ISDS News

Now Available: Responses to the Call for Potential Uses of PHSS Data

2012-02-06T14:59:00.003-05:00

In November, ISDS issued a Call for Potential Uses of Public Health Syndromic Surveillance (PHSS) Data to seek input from U.S. and international surveillance professionals to determine the primary public health purposes of PHSS and the data elements needed from inpatient and ambulatory clinical care settings.

Open-ended responses were collected using an on-line survey form. The survey remained open for approximately six week. The de-identified responses to this call are now available on the ISDS website. This stakeholder input has been used to inform the development of recommendations by the ISDS Meaningful Use Workgroup.

You may now view and download the Preliminary Analysis and the Preliminary Data (raw data) reports that discuss the stakeholder response. It is important to note that the views expressed in these documents are the respondents' and no not necessarily represent the views of the International Society for Disease Surveillance or the Meaningful Use Workgroup.

Now Available: Introduction to the National Emergency Medical Services Information System (NEMSIS) Webinar Recording and Slides

2012-02-01T12:22:00.001-05:00

If you missed the January 31st webinar entitled "Introduction to the National Emergency Medical Services Information System (NEMSIS) and Its Potential Uses in Syndromic Surveillance", you may now download a pdf of the presentation slides or view a recording of the webinar below. You may also visit the webinar page in the ISDS webinar archives to learn more about the presenters and the information that was discussed.

ISDS would like to thank the presenters Dr. Clay Mann, Gamunu Wijetunge, and Bernice Boursiquot for their wonderful and informative presentation. If you would like to learn more about NEMSIS, create your own customizable report of EMS data, or get updated on the latest NEMSIS news visit www.NEMSIS.org.

ISDS Member Publication

2012-01-20T16:06:00.000-05:00

ISDS member, Dr. Scott McNabb, and ISDS Board member, Dr. John Brownstein, were among the contributing authors of the article "Infectious disease surveillance and modelling across geographic frontiers and scientific specialties" that was recently published in the The Lancet Infectious Diseases. This article discusses the sharing of epidemic intelligence across global frontiers using new technologies and modelling that crosses scientific specialties for improved infectious disease surveillance for mass gatherings.

Read a summary of this article below and the full text in The Lancet to learn more.

Infectious disease surveillance and modelling across geographic frontiers and scientific specialties

Dr Kamran Khan MD a b n , Scott JN McNabb PhD c, Prof Ziad A Memish MD d e n, Rose Eckhardt MA b, Wei Hu BSc b, David Kossowsky BA b, Jennifer Sears BSc b, Julien Arino PhD f, Anders Johansson PhD g h, Maurizio Barbeschi PhD i n, Brian McCloskey MDj n, Bonnie Henry MD k n, Martin Cetron MD l, John S Brownstein PhD m n

Summary:

Infectious disease surveillance for mass gatherings (MGs) can be directed locally and globally; however, epidemic intelligence from these two levels is not well integrated. Modelling activities related to MGs have historically focused on crowd behaviours around MG focal points and their relation to the safety of attendees. The integration of developments in internet-based global infectious disease surveillance, transportation modelling of populations travelling to and from MGs, mobile phone technology for surveillance during MGs, metapopulation epidemic modelling, and crowd behaviour modelling is important for progress in MG health. Integration of surveillance across geographic frontiers and modelling across scientific specialties could produce the first real-time risk monitoring and assessment platform that could strengthen awareness of global infectious disease threats before, during, and immediately after MGs. An integrated platform of this kind could help identify infectious disease threats of international concern at the earliest stages possible; provide insights into which diseases are most likely to spread into the MG; help with anticipatory surveillance at the MG; enable mathematical modelling to predict the spread of infectious diseases to and from MGs; simulate the effect of public health interventions aimed at different local and global levels; serve as a foundation for scientific research and innovation in MG health; and strengthen engagement between the scientific community and stakeholders at local, national, and global levels.
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As member service, ISDS likes to share information about its members with the ISDS community. ISDS staff depends on the help of others to notify us of member news. If you are an ISDS member and would like ISDS to share something, please send the information to Amanda at aschulte@syndromic.org.

ISDS welcomes Becky Zwickl!

2012-01-18T13:08:00.002-05:00

The ISDS staff extends a warm welcome to the newest member of our team, Becky Zwickl.

Becky is the new Public Health Analyst and will be working primarily on supporting the Syndromic Surveillance for Meaningful Use: Inpatient and Ambulatory Clinical Care Data project. We are very excited to have her with us, and we are looking forward to all of the work we will accomplish together.

Becky's bio: Becky Zwickl joined ISDS in 2012. Her responsibilities mainly consist of coordinating and assisting with ISDS’s recommendations for public health use of electronic health record data from ambulatory and inpatient clinical care settings relating to implementation of Meaningful Use regulations.

Becky is in the process of completing a MPH at Boston University School of Public Health with concentrations in Health Policy and Management and Epidemiology. During her time at Boston University she worked as an emergency preparedness support consultant providing preparation assistance to local public health departments. In her role as a consultant, Becky also wrote grants and reports and provided research support.

Becky has a BA in psychology from University of Michigan.

Welcome Becky!

Feedback Requested: Draft Charter of the BioSense Governance Group

2012-01-12T14:30:00.000-05:00

ASTHO, in association with the Interim BioSense Governance Group, created a DRAFT Charter of the BioSense Governance Group and is requesting comments and suggestions from ISDS members.

You may view the Draft Charter below or download the pdf document here.

Please write your comments in the "Post a Comment" section at the end of this entry or email your comments to Amanda at aschulte@syndromic.org by February 6, 2012.

Thank you for your feedback.

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Draft Charter of the BioSense 2.0 Governance Group

BioSense 2.0

BioSense 2.0 is the web-accessibleplatform used to receive, store, maintain, process, analyze, and display data.It is a service for state, local, and territorial health agencies for datasharing and analysis. BioSense 2.0 can also be utilized as a tool for sharingdata that it contains between public health agencies.

BioSense Program

The BioSense Program, run bythe Centers for Disease Control (CDC), facilitates recognition and tracking ofhealth problems as they evolve, and provides public health officials with thedata, information and tools they need to better prepare for and respond, in acoordinated way, to threats to the health of the American people.

Participating Jurisdiction

The term “participating jurisdiction” will be either alocal or state health jurisdiction operating under either statutory orregulatory authority to provide data to BioSense 2.0 and has agreed to theterms and conditions of the BioSense 2.0 Data Use Agreement (DUA). The formal designation of a participatingjurisdiction in the BioSense 2.0 DUA is “Data Source”,

User

The term "User" is any authorized user ofdata available through BioSense 2.0. All users must be affiliated with aparticipating jurisdiction and be held to Terms and Conditions of Data Use andSecurity standards by the Data Source.

BioSense 2.0 Governance Group

The BioSense 2.0 Governance Group was created in accordance with acooperative agreement between ASTHO and the CDC to ensure key stakeholderinvolvement in BioSense 2.0. The purpose of this group is to oversee thedevelopment and use of BioSense 2.0.

Roles of the BioSense 2.0 Governance Group:

· To provide representation from a diverse set ofpublic health stakeholders from state, local, and federal levels

· To set strategic priorities, overall policy, anddirection for BioSense 2.0

· To assure that overall system development isresponsive to data contributor and user input

· To serve as a conduit for feedback andrecommendations from the constituents that the Governance Group’s membersrepresent

· To identify and recommend new categories of datasources to be added to BioSense 2.0

· To make recommendations for resolving disputesabout or violations of data use agreements for BioSense 2.0

· To form governance sub-committees and policyworkgroups as needed.

Governance Group members are expected to represent their participatingjurisdiction organizations and:

· Solicit input from their respectiveconstituencies

· Act as a conduit of information among theirorganizations and constituencies and the Governance Group

· Actively participate in conference calls andface to face meetings

Desired attributes ofGovernance Group members include:

· Interest and commitment to improving nationalsurveillance efforts

· Ability to fairly represent the views of theirconstituencies

· Familiarity with the assets and needs of theirconstituencies

· Knowledge and experience in syndromicsurveillance and policy

· Skill in collaboration and consensus

· Ability to attend face-to-face meetings andmonthly teleconferences

Composition of the BioSense 2.0 Governance Group

The Governance Group shall be composed of 15 people, each with a singlevote on all matters under the purview of the Governance Group:

· 4 Individuals shall represent the various publichealth associations that will utilize BioSense 2.0. Specifically, there shall be one representativeeach from:

o TheAssociation of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO)

o TheCouncil of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE)

o TheNational Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO)

o TheInternational Society for Disease Surveillance (ISDS)

· 3 Individuals shall represent the followingfederal data submitting agencies:

o TheU.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC)

o TheU.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

o TheU.S. Department of Defense (DOD)

· 8Individuals shall represent the various groups which will be submitting data tothe BioSense 2.0 system:

o 3shall be from state or territorial public health agencies

o 3shall be from county or city public health agencies

o 2shall be from data contributors which are non-public health agencies (such ashealthcare facilities, pharmacies, etc)

Selection of Governance Group Members:

Representatives of ASTHO, CSTE, NACCHO, ISDS, CDC, VA, and DOD shall bechosen by their respective groups using whatever means each group sees fit touse.

Representatives of the 8 non-federal data submitting groups shall bechosen by secret-ballot election, facilitated by ASTHO, among the population ofBioSense 2.0 participating jurisdictions. Elections shall be held separately for state/territorial, county/city,and non-public health representatives.

For state/territorial and county/city elections, each participatingjurisdiction is permitted to nominate one representative as a candidate forelection in their respective categories.

For non-public health agency representative elections, theparticipating jurisdictions may nominate one candidate from a data-contributingfacility located within their jurisdiction.

State and territorial data submitters may only vote in thestate/territorial elections, city and county may only vote in city/countyelections. All participatingjurisdictions can vote in elections for the non public health agency representatives.

For all elections, each participating jurisdiction may cast onevote.

The top 3 vote-receivers from the state/territorial and county/cityelections, and the top 2 from non-public health elections, shall be therepresentatives on the Governance Group for the upcoming Term.

Governance Group Terms of Service

Governance Group members will serve a term of two years to begin justfollowing their elections.

These terms will be staggered as follows:

1) STand CC agencies: 2 members shall serve in the same 2-year term while 1 memberwill serve an overlapping 2-year term, staggered by one year.

2) NPHgroups: each of the two members shall serve overlapping 2-year terms, staggeredby one year.

The first Governance Group will hold elections for all 8 positions,with one each of ST, CC, and NPH groups to be designated with a term of onlyone year. Upon expiration of theone-year terms, new elections will be held for these positions which will thenhave a normal term of two-years.

If any scheduling conflict prevents a member from attending anymeeting, the member ispermitted to designate a substitute, with voting rights, on acase-by-case basis.

Permanent vacancies created for any reason will be filled by selectionof an interim member as chosen by the four public health associations and, ifavailable, the member that has vacated the role.

Governance Group Co-Chairs

To facilitate aspects of Governance Group function, a chairshall be elected. The term of the Chairshall be one year, followed by one year as Past-Chair. The Past Chair shallserve as a backup when the chair is unable to participate for any period.

The Chair will be elected – by secret ballot of the Groupmembership – with the Chair-elect havingaccumulated the most votes. In the caseof a tie between two members, a second vote will be held until one receives amajority.

Upon completion of a Chair’s term, the Group will holdelections for a new Chair.

The first Governance Group will hold elections for both aChair and a Past-Chair, with the position of Past-Chair having a term of oneyear.

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Special procedures for the initial launch of the Group:

Representativesof the 8 non-federal data submitting groups shall be chosen by an interim groupconsisting of members from ASTHO, CSTE, NACCHO, and ISDS. These shall be temporary memberships untilelections can be held. One of the firstdecisions of this Governance Group shall be to determine when there will besufficient numbers of data submitters enrolled in BioSense 2.0 to makeelections feasible.

Theresulting Group will be a Transitional Governing Group.

TheTransitional Group will elect Co-Chairs. These will also be Transitional positions and will expire onceGovernance Group elections are held and the proper terms of office begin.

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PolicyFormation by the Governance Group

The BioSense 2.0 Governance Group shall meet, in person or byconference call, on a periodic basis as determined by the Group in order todiscuss policy issues surrounding use of and participation in BioSense2.0. Meeting frequency should be at least twice per year, but as manymeetings may be held as necessary.

Policies under the purview of the Group include developmentof the roles and responsibilities for participants in BioSense2.0. Policy proposals to be considered by the Governance Group maybe suggested by a member of the Group or by other BioSense participants.. If anissue is to be considered by the Governance Group, documents outlining policyproposals will be drafted (facilitated by ASTHO) and supplied to the Group forcomment, revision, and, votes for approval, if warranted.

Votingon Policy

Votes will be held at arranged meetings of the GovernanceGroup (in person or via teleconference).

In order to assure a voting member of the Governance Groupreceives sufficient informed input from those they represent, any issues forwhich a vote is required shall be presented to the Group at least two weeks inadvance of any scheduled vote.

A vote may only proceed when a quorum of at least 60% of thegovernance group participates.

Sufficient time will be given to discuss each issuescheduled for a vote prior to the vote itself. The vote itself willbe an open-ballot vote (ie, by show of hands or verbal assent), but will not berecorded unless specifically requested.

Passage of an issue shall require a majority of at least60% (sixty) percent of votes in the affirmative, however the goal shallalways be to strive for consensus.

Changesto the BioSense 2.0 Governance Charter

Changes to this charter document shall be proposed to theGovernance Group by providing the written amendments for the Group toconsider. After sufficient time fordiscussion and debate, the Group shall vote on the written amendments.

Participation of all Governance Group members, orappointed substitutes, shall be required for a vote on charter amendments toproceed.

Passage of anamendment shall require a vote of 2/3 of the complete membership of theGovernance Group in the affirmative.

Changes to the charter will be reflected in a new draft ofthis document, with a recording of the date of revision. An archive will be kept of all officialprevious versions of this charter.

ISDS members in the News

2012-01-11T17:31:00.001-05:00

ISDS Board Director John Brownstein and ISDS member Rumi Chunara discussed the use of social media to track the outbreak of infectious diseases in a recent CNN Health article entitled "Tracking Infectious Disease on Twitter". Working with HealthMap.org and researchers at Harvard Medical School, Brownstein and Chunara described the results of using Twitter searches to analyze the 2011 cholera outbreak in Haiti.

This research found that the data derived retrospectively from social media outlets, such as Twitter, correlated with health ministry case reports. During specific times of the outbreak, such as the first incident of cholera, the social media data closely reflected the real outbreak.

John Brownstein discussed the potential of using social media searches as a real-time tool that could influence the type of prevention used in future outbreaks. This type of disease tracking may be particularly useful in resource-poor setting like Haiti, where it is difficult to collect a lot of data early on during outbreaks.

Read the full article on the CNN Health website.

BioSense Program Challenge Grant LOI Due 1/13/12

2012-01-11T09:48:00.000-05:00

The deadline to submit letters of intent (LOI) for the BioSense Program Challenge Grant is this Friday, January 13th. You may find more information about this project, eligibility, and specific requirements for the LOI by reading the information below taken form the BioSense Community Forum or by reading the pdf document BioSense 2.0: Challenge Grant Opportunity Announcement and Call for Letters of Intent.

The announcement and call for LOI outlines the instructions for the letters of intent as well as the letter template. Using the template provided, the letters should be 1 to 2 pages and include the following information:

1. Barrier or challenge being addressed;

2. Desired outcomes;

3. Project approach;

4. Estimated amount of funding requested; and

5. Period of time required to complete project.

Take advantage of this opportunity to enhance your syndromic surveillance capabilities!

The following is the December 22, 2011 BioSense Community Forum posting found here.

Last week, the BioSense Redesign team announced a new Challenge Grant opportunity for the public health community. In this section, we will share information about the application and review process, and provide updates on an ongoing basis.

Letter of Intent review and evaluation

The first step in the application process is to submit a Letter of Intent. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)will evaluate the letters of intent to ensure alignment with BioSense Program priorities. Notification will be provided to all sites and jurisdictions that submit letters of intent.

Applicants will receive 1 of 3 types of notification:

1) Invitation to submit a full grant application

2) Invitation to submit a full grant application with additional guidance to refine project

3) Rejection notice

Full grant application review and evaluation

Only those applicants who receive an invitation to submit a full grant application are eligible to apply. Each grant application will be reviewed by 2 independent reviewers and scored against the evaluation criteria provided in the grant application instructions.

Significant differences between scores will be discussed and reconciled at a review meeting.

Final adjusted scores will be produced and award decisions will be made.

TIMELINE

Challenge Grant Opportunity Announcement and Call for Letters of Intent posted: December 14, 2011
Letters of Intent due: January 13, 2012
Letter of Intent review period: January 13, 2012 - February 3, 2012
Notifications sent to all sites and jurisdictions submitting Letters of Intent: February 6, 2012
Period for full Grant Applications closes: March 2, 2012
Grant award decisions: March 30, 2012
Grant project period ends: no later than March 30, 2013.

More Information

More information about the BioSense Program and BioSense 2.0 is available at: www.biosenseredesign.org or submit questions to info@biosen.se

2011 ISDS Conference Presentations Now Available

2012-01-10T17:01:00.000-05:00

The 2011 ISDS Annual Conference presentation slides are now available on the ISDS website. Follow this link to find the presentations and individual abstracts from the conference presenters: http://www.syndromic.org/annual-conference/2011/Session1.

We are still in the process of maintaining approval to share several of the presentations, so check back within the coming weeks for more updates.

*If you presented at the conference and would like to share your slides on the website, please email aschulte@syndromic.org with a copy of your presentation.

Meaningful Use Workgroup Selected

2011-12-22T11:28:00.001-05:00

The Syndromic Surveillance for Meaningful Use: Inpatient and Ambulatory Clinical Care EHR Data project is well underway. The Call for Meaningful Use Workgroup Nominations has ended and the workgroup has officially been chosen. ISDS received many qualified candidates for the workgroup positions during the call for nominations. It was difficult to select a few members from such an outstanding pool of nominees. Member expertise span multiple areas within public health, clinical care, and medical informatics. Many workgroup members hold prominent positions within the stakeholder community and currently work or have previously worked on national policy initiatives. These various perspectives in addition to stakeholder input will help ensure that a balanced and informed recommendation will be reached. To learn more about the various workgroup members, visit the Meaningful Use Workgroup page and view the workgroup bios (pdf).

This 10-person workgroup is tasked with guiding the development of ISDS recommendations to support public health authorities in using Meaningful Use certified hospital inpatient and ambulatory EHR data for timely and effective public health prevention and response. These recommendations will build upon the ISDS Final Recommendation: Core Processes and EHR Requirements for Public Health Syndromic Surveillance, published on January 31, 2011. You may view this recommendation here (pdf). You may also learn more about the current recommendation process by watching Charlie Ishikawa's November 8, 2011 introduction webinar here.

More information on the first Meaningful Use Workgroup meetings and accomplishments will be coming soon. Until then, visit the project homepage for more information.

If you have any questions, contact Charlie Ishikawa at meaningfuluse@syndromic.org or (617) 779-0886.

Published Joint Statistical Meetings Proceedings Papers

2011-12-21T11:08:00.000-05:00

View two recently published 2011 JSM Proceedings papers about the Distribute project.

Analytic Evaluation of a Standardization Effort for the DISTRIBUTE Emergency Department Surveillance Project

Howard Burkom, Donald Olson, Atar Baer, Marc Paladini, Debra Revere, Anne McIntyre

Generation of Prediction Intervals to Assess Data Quality in the Distribute System Using Quantile Regression

Ian Painter, Julie Eaton, Don Olson, Debra Revere, Bill Lober

BioSense 2.0: Challenge Grant Opportunity

2011-12-15T13:39:00.002-05:00

On behalf of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), RTI has released an announcement detailing the BioSense Challenge Grant Opportunity.

The BioSense Program plans to award 10 grants ranging in value from $5,000 to $25,000 through RTI International. RTI has a contract with CDC (contract number GS10F0097L) to facilitate the redesign of the BioSense application and will administer the Challenge Grant award process.
You may find more information about this opportunity by viewing the BioSense 2.0: Challenge Grant Opportunity and Call for Letters of Intent PDF document.
Estimated Key Dates
· Challenge Grant Opportunity Announcement and Call for Letters of Intent posted: December 14, 2011

·         Period for submitting Letters of Intent: December 14, 2011 - January 13, 2012
·         Letter of Intent review period: January 13, 2012 - February 3, 2012
·         Period for full Grant Applications closes: March 2, 2012
·         Grant award decisions: March 30, 2012
·         Grant project period ends: no later than March 30, 2013.

More Information
More information about the BioSense Program and BioSense 2.0 is available at: www.biosenseredesign.org or submit questions to info@biosen.se

Congratulations to the newly elected ISDS Board of Directors!

2011-12-13T11:58:00.000-05:00

The polls have closed and the election results are in! On behalf of the ISDS staff, we extend warm congratulations to the newly elected and re-elected Board members:

Atar Baer

Aaron Kite-Powell

Joe Lombardo

Marc Paladini

We are looking forward to the further contributions of these four Board members to ISDS. Visit the Board page on the ISDS website for the full listing of ISDS Board of Directors and their bios.

Thank you to everyone who participated in this election!

If you are an ISDS member and would like to receive a copy of the monthly Board meeting minutes, please contact Amanda Schulte at aschulte@syndromic.org.

New Grant Opportunity for Public Health Systems Research, Deadline 12/05/2011

2011-11-30T18:54:00.001-05:00

Cal PREPARE is pleased to announce the availability of funds to fund one New Investigator Award andtwo-three Pilot Project Awards for Public Health Systems & Services Research. The purpose of the awardsprogram is to establish a resource for new investigators, established investigators and doctoral students toembark on a new area of research. The program provides an opportunity to build capacity, developcompetency, and collaboration in different public health networks. (Awardees will have the ability toincorporate specialties, disciplines, and research techniques outside of traditional methods to public healthsystems research.)

Our mission is “to conduct all-hazards research, training, and services that (1) improves the biosurveillancecapabilities of public health systems; and (2) improves the capability of public health and local communitiesto prevent, protect against, respond to, and recover from public health emergencies.” Withinbiosurveillance, we will focus on early warning, detection, and monitoring; causal investigations andinference; information and data management, tactical and targeted communications; and situationalawareness and decision support.

To implement our mission, we are conducting public health systems research projects in the followingareas:
Project 1: :All-hazards communication to improve the resilience of vulnerable populations;Project 2: Early warning, investigation, surveillance: Epidemiology networks in action (EpiNet);Project 3: Closing the chemical, radiological, nuclear gaps in public health all-hazards preparedness; and
Project 4:Cal PREPARE Exercise Laboratory (EXLAB): Systems research using state wide operations-based exercises.

For more information on deadlines and eligibility, visit: http://www.idready.org/2011calpreparefoa.htm.

Evaluating surveillance and public health interventions in a SnAP

2011-11-28T17:31:00.001-05:00

Join CDC & Dr. Buckeridge following the ISDS Meeting - Registration information enclosed

** SAVE THE DATE **

Frontiers of Public Health Informatics presents:
“Evaluating surveillance and public health interventions in a SnAP”
Speaker
David L. Buckeridge, MD PhD FRCPC
Date/Time
December 9, 2011
11:00-12:00 EST
Location
CDC Roybal Campus
Distance Learning Auditorium

Register via this link:
http://www.instantpresenter.com/AccountManager/RegEv.aspx?PIID=EA50D6838849

There is an increasing demand to measure the impact of surveillance enhancements and public health interventions on outcomes. Direct measurement is difficult and can be performed only after surveillance systems are changed or interventions are implemented. The Simulation Analysis Platform (SnAP) was developed to measure the effect of public health innovations on outcomes. SnAP models uncertainty explicitly to allow researchers and decision-makers to estimate how surveillance enhancements and interventions are likely to affect health and economic outcomes.

*****
David Buckeridge is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at McGill University in Montreal where he holds a Canada Research Chair in Public Health Informatics and directs the Surveillance Lab. He is also a Medical Consultant to the Montreal Public Health Department and the President of the International Society for Disease Surveillance. His research focuses on the informatics of public health surveillance and disease control. Dr Buckeridge has consulted on surveillance to groups such as the Institute of Medicine, the US and Chinese Centers for Disease Control, and the World Health Organization. He has a M.D. from Queen's University, a M.Sc. in Epidemiology from the University of Toronto, and a Ph.D. in Biomedical informatics from Stanford University. Dr Buckeridge is also a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada with specialty training in Public Health and Preventive Medicine.

*****
The Frontiers of Public Health Informatics Seminar is a platform for continued learning about public health informatics science. Join your colleagues to listen to renowned scientists who have demonstrated research and applications of informatics science to improve public health.

Register above for Webinar and Teleconference Information / Available CDC-wide on IPTV

*****
Public Health Informatics and Technology Program Office
Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Point of Contact: Rick Jones - rjonesII@cdc.gov

EXTENDED DEADLINE: Call for Potential Uses of Public Health Syndromic Surveillance Data

2011-11-18T15:42:00.001-05:00

Thank you to everyone who has participated so far in this call for potential uses! We will continue to accept responses to the Call for Potential Uses of Public Health Syndromic Surveillance Data until Monday, December 12, 2011.

Syndromic Surveillance for Meaningful Use: Inpatient and Ambulatory Clinical Care Data

Call for Potential Uses of Public Health Syndromic Surveillance Data:
ISDS is seeking input from U.S. and international surveillance professionals to determine the primary public health purposes of public health syndromic surveillance (PHSS) and the data elements needed from inpatient and ambulatory clinical care settings.

Submit your potential uses on-line here.

All responses must be submitted using the online submission process by Monday, December 12, 2011 at 9pm EST.

Vist the Call for Potential Uses webpage and Meaningful Use webpage for more information.

Questions: Contact Charlie Ishikawa, MSPH at (617) 779-0886, or via email at meaningfuluse@syndromic.org for more information.

EpiDig: Using Gaming Tools to Train Disease Surveillance Professionals

2011-11-16T16:31:00.001-05:00

The ISDS staff previewed the Epidemiological Disease Investigation Game (EpiDig) today with some of the development team from the MIT Lincoln Laboratory. This was an exciting sneak peak at the game that will be presented and played at the Pre-Conference Workshop at the 10th Annual ISDS Conference on December 6th, 2011.

EpiDig is a public health game developed by the MIT Lincoln Laboratory in collaboration with the Boston Public Health Commission in which players become public health investigators attempting to solve a public health crisis. Those who attend Track 2: Using Gaming Tools to Train Disease Surveillance Professionals and Investigate Next-Generation Capabilities at the Pre-Conference will learn how game-based tools can be used for training and technology evaluation and have an opportunity to play EpiDig themselves.

Space is limited for this fun and engaging workshop, so register today!

For more information on the Pre-Conference Workshop tracks, visit the Pre-Confernce webpage.

BioSense 2.0 Rollout

2011-11-15T09:13:00.001-05:00

The following is a brief message from the BioSense 2.0 redesign team:

BioSense 2.0 is open for business! For more info on how to join, please e-mail info@biosen.se. Click here for ongoing BioSense 2.0 developments and news updates. Twenty-first century surveillance is here!

Position announcement: Director, Division of Informatics Solutions and Operation, CDC

2011-11-14T10:57:00.001-05:00

The following is a message from Jim Buehler, MD, Director of the Public Health Surveillance & Informatics Program Office (proposed) within the Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services at the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention.

Dear Colleagues,

I would like to draw your attention to the posting for the position of Director, Division of Informatics Solutions and Operations (DISO) within the Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology, & Laboratory Services (OSELS) at CDC. The URL for the posting is: http://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/PrintPreview/300993300. Please share this message with colleagues who might be interested.

While the announcement lists the Division as being in the Public Health Informatics and Technology Operations (PHITPO), the Division will soon become part of the new Public Health Surveillance and Informatics Program Office, which will arise from the merger of PHITPO and the OSELS Public Health Surveillance Program Office (PHSPO). The merger acknowledges the critical relationship between surveillance and informatics while emphasizing that the role of public health informatics extends well beyond surveillance. The mission of this new office will be to advance the science and practice of public health surveillance and informatics. We will do that by:

*   Managing several large national surveillance programs, including the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System, BioSense, and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System;
*   Providing leadership and services that support the surveillance and informatics infrastructures for public health at local/state and national levels; and
*   Serving as a “home” at CDC for addressing cross-cutting issues in surveillance, including biosurveillance as part of emergency preparedness, and informatics practice.

As a Program Office, we will have a unique vantage at the crossroads between CDC and its constituents in local, state, and territorial health departments, other federal agencies, and partner organizations in addressing the spectrum of issues that affect public health surveillance and informatics practice. While our primary focus is on domestic issues, we will also have a role on the global stage.

A critical function of our new office will be to continue and strengthen the leadership role that PHITPO, as well as PHSPO, has played in advancing the Meaningful Use of electronic health records for both healthcare and population health objectives.

The Division of Informatics Solutions and Operations is responsible for providing informatics and information technology services that support not only the surveillance systems within the Program Office but also infrastructures that support surveillance and other program services across CDC and in state and local health departments. We are seeking candidates who can provide scientific leadership in the field of informatics, lead and manage an interdisciplinary team of federal employees and contract staff in the federal government environment, oversee the management of large and complex information technology contracts, and embody OSELS’ commitment to service on behalf of CDC’s mission.

For additional information about the position, contact information is provided in the position announcement. Thanks very much for your interest and support.

Jim

James W. Buehler, MD
Director, Public Health Surveillance & Informatics Program Office (proposed)
Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology, & Laboratory Services
Centers for Disease Control & Prevention

BioSense 2.0--21st Century Surveillance is Days Away

2011-11-11T14:31:00.001-05:00

The following is an important message from the BioSense 2.0 Team:

In just a few days, BioSense 2.0 will be open for business! Thenew environment is the result of your feedback on design features, specifications,and data needs…and one thing is for sure… we’ve heard you loud and clear duringour requirements gathering activities. Thenewly designed and developed BioSense 2.0 has many features suggested by users.We also know that our users need technical assistance (TA) that is robust andefficient. We’ve not only heard you, butwe’ve built a comprehensive technical assistance framework for easy TA accessand navigation.

The TA framework features a web-based tool to track and manageTA requests ensuring that all requests are resolved in a timely manner. Technicalassistance questions and requests can be submitted through a variety ofchannels, including info@biosen.se. Sincethe rollout is just days away, we’re finalizing TA tools and resources toassist with the launch and any on-boarding needs (including DUA completion anddata sharing links) users may have. As the system matures, we anticipate thatTA needs will shift to a more traditional form of direct support for users andcreative uses of the system (i.e., Challenge Grants).

For additional information, please take a moment to view ournew FAQsor simply visit the BioSense Redesign CollaborationSite where you can contribute to RequirementsGathering Posts; sign up to be an editor for the coverage map, read ourmost recent community forum posts, or subscribe to our RSS feed for updates.Please send comments to info@biosen.se.

Extended Deadline: Call for Nominations to Meaningful Use Workgroup

2011-11-10T21:41:00.001-05:00

Syndromic Surveillance for Meaningful Use: Inpatient and Ambulatory Clinical Care Data

Call for Nominations to Meaningful Use Workgroup:
Due to requests for an extended deadline, nominations to the Meaningful Use Workgroup will be accepted until Wednesday, November 16, 2011.

ISDS is seeking nominations for members of a new 10-person Meaningful Use Workgroup with various stakeholder perspectives and expertise in public health practice and medical informatics. This workgroup will guide the development of ISDS recommendations to support public health authorities in using Meaningful Use certified hospital inpatient and ambulatory EHR data for timely and effective public health prevention and response.

For more information about the workgroup and the nomination process, visit the workgroup webpage.

New extended deadline:

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Call for Potential Uses of Public Health Syndromic Surveillance Data:

ISDS is seeking input from U.S. and international surveillance professionals to determine the primary public health purposes of public health syndromic surveillance (PHSS) and the data elements needed from inpatient and ambulatory clinical care settings.

Submit your potential uses on-line here.

All responses must be submitted using the online submission process by Friday, November 18, 2011 at 9pm EST.

Visit the Call for Potential Uses webpage for more information.

Questions: Contact Charlie Ishikawa, MSPH at (617) 779-0880, or via email at meaningfuluse@syndromic.org for more information.

Public Health Reporting Initiative

2011-11-09T15:33:00.000-05:00

The following is a message from John Stinn regarding the ONC Standards and Interoperability (S&I) Framework Public Health Reporting Initiative. Find a summary of the background of this project here. You may also find guidelines on how to submit a candidate user story for the public health reporting initiative here.

Public Health Reporting Initiative Participants -
How might reporting to public health agencies be performed efficiently from electronic health records (EHRs)—whether for newborn screening, infectious diseases or medical device adverse events? Can reporting requirements be made more consistent across public health programs and jurisdictions? Would this yield faster, more complete and more reusable information at lower costs to both report senders and receivers? These are some of the questions that the Public Health Reporting Initiative seeks to answer. Organized under the Standards and Interoperability Framework of the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT, the goal is to standardize and simplify how healthcare providers electronically submit mandated reports to health departments.
In 2012 the initiative will collect all User Stories (public health reporting scenarios from different public health programs) and seek to harmonize the data elements, standards, and reporting mechanisms. We will prioritize for the most standards ready User Stories into a single standards-based implementation guide in 2012, which can be iteratively expanded over the following years. This could then be tested, and considered for national implementation, if successful.
Between now and November 18, we invite you to submit one or more User Stories you’d like considered, using the guidelines found here, for group consideration. We seek User Stories that focus on the initial report from a healthcare provider EHR to a local, state or federal public health agency. Initiative participants will review your User Story for inclusion into the first such Implementation Guide. Anyone may submit a User Story, and anyone may participate in the process that follows by participating in the Wiki discussions.
Examples of the types of User Stories to be considered include:
·         birth registration (birth certificate),
·         newborn hearing screening (hearing screening test results report),
·         reporting a healthcare-acquired infection
·         reporting a drug or vaccine adverse effect
·         newborn metabolic screening (newborn screening laboratory test results reports),
·         an initial infectious disease report (including non-laboratory information)
·         an immunization (immunization administration report)
·         a cancer or other chronic disease registry report
Your submission must be received by 11/18/2011. If you’d like to submit a user story, simply submit the story to John Stinn (jstinn@cdc.gov) or Lindsay Oweida (loweida@cdc.gov), and we will post to the Public Health Reporting wiki.
Thank you,
John Stinn
Public Health Reporting Initiative Support Lead

Call for Potential Uses of Public Health Syndromic Surveillance Data

2011-11-04T17:59:00.000-04:00

The new Syndromic Surveillance Meaningful Use: Inpatient and Ambulatory Care Data project seeks to expand ISDS's previous Meaningful Use recommendation through a community consensus-driven process. ISDS is currently seeking input from surveillance professionals to determine primary purposes of public health syndromic surveillance (PHSS) and the data elements needed from inpatient and ambulatory clinical care setting.

By filling out a brief questionnaire about the potential uses of public health syndromic surveillance data, you can contribute to the development of this important new Meaningful Use recommendation.

Please take a few moments to fill out Potential Uses of Public Health Syndromic Surveillance Data questionnaire (link).

Your input is greatly appreciated and will be essential to the development of a consensus-driven recommendation.

Please submit your responses no later than Friday, November 18, 2011.

If you would like to hear an introduction to this project, attend our webinar on Tuesday, November 8, 2011 at 12:30p-1:30p ET. Charlie Ishiskawa, MSPH will be giving an introduction to this new project and leading discussion on the Call for Potential Uses of Public Health Syndromic Surveillance Data. Register Now!

Visit the Project Overview, Project Details and Call for Potential Uses of PHSS pages for more information regarding this project. If you have any questions about this project or the call for potential uses, please contact Charlie Ishikawa, MSPH at meaningfuluse@syndromic.org or (617) 779-0886.

Thank you!

Call for Nominations to Meaningful Use Workgroup

2011-10-31T16:59:00.000-04:00

ISDS is seeking nominations for members of a new 10-person Meaningful Use Workgroup with various stakeholder perspectives and expertise in public health practice and medical informatics. One workgroup member will be invited to chair the group by ISDS based on their experience and suitability to the role. Based on the public health uses that ISDS anticipates receiving during the Call for Potential Uses of Public Health Syndromic Surveillance Data, specific expertise in routine public health surveillance using hospital inpatient and primary care data, chronic disease control and prevention, infectious disease control, and injury control and prevention may be requested. Also, given the policy implications of this project, professionals involved in national public health, healthcare, and medical informatics

associations are requested.

ISDS Meaningful Use Workgroup: The multi-stakeholder MUse Workgroup will guide the development of ISDS recommendations to support public health authorities in using Meaningful Use certified hospital inpatient and ambulatory EHR data for timely and effective public health prevention and response. Workgroup members will work with ISDS staff to develop the project artifacts, provide advice about the subject, ensure input is obtained from relevant stakeholders, review draft materials, review stakeholder input, and recommend specific guidelines to the stakeholder community within the context of Meaningful Use.

Time Commitment: The ISDS MUse Workgroup will meet several times via teleconference and three times during in-person meetings in Boston, MA, and Atlanta, GA:
1.   Conference call - Introduce the Syndromic Surveillance Meaningful Use: Inpatient and Ambulatory Clinical Data project: November 30, 2011, 2:00-4:00 pm ET
   2.   In-person meeting #1 - Review stakeholder input, identify preliminary recommendations: December 4-5, 2011
   3.   Conference call - Refine preliminary recommendations: December 21, 2011 (tentative)
   4.   Conference call - Review draft preliminary recommendation report: January 25, 2012 (tentative)
   5.   In-person meeting #2 - Document business processes: February 14-15, 2012 (tentative)
   6.   Conference call - Review preliminary stakeholder comments: March 7, 2012 (tentative)
   7.   In-person meeting #3 - Refine recommendations for provisional report: April 10-11, 2012 (tentative)
   8.   Conference call - Review draft provisional recommendation report: May 16, 2012 (tentative)
   9.   Conference call - Review provisional stakeholder comments: July 18, 2012 (tentative)
   10.  Conference call - Review draft final recommendation report: August 8, 2012 (tentative)

Workgroup members may be asked to attend additional conference calls, review materials, and provide feedback throughout the process. Follow-up e-mail communications or conference calls will be required.

Nomination Process
Self-nominations are welcome. Third-party nominations must indicate that the individual has been contacted and is willing to serve. To be considered for appointment to the Workgroup, please send the following information to meaningfuluse@syndromic.org, subject "Workgroup Nomination":
   ✓    completed Nomination Form
   ✓    one-page letter of interest highlighting experience relevant to the expertise described above and involvement in national public health, healthcare, or medical informatics associations
   ✓   curriculum vitae or resume listing relevant experience

Deadline for submission: All nominations must be submitted electronically via the online submission form by 9:00 pm ET on Friday, November 11, 2011.

Questions: If you have any question, please contact, Charlie Ishikawa at 617-779-0886 or meaningfuluse@syndromic.org.

Nomination Information pdf

Last Day for Early Conference Registration (10/24)

2011-10-24T09:35:00.000-04:00

Today (Monday, October 24th) is the last day to take advantage of the reduced price of early registration for the 10th Annual ISDS Conference. Register now!

Building the Future of Public Health Surveillance

The International Society for Disease Surveillance proudly celebrates its tenth annual conference dedicated to the advancement of the technology, research, and practice of public health surveillance. This unique gathering brings together a community of researchers and practitioners focused on monitoring, understanding, and improving population health. The conference presents scientific work at the juncture of innovative analytical techniques, progressive public health practice, and cutting edge informatics to support a timely, accurate and informed response to emerging outbreaks of disease and other health threats. Come help us evaluate where we have been, explore where we are, and envision what can be as we work together to build the future of public health surveillance.

This year's conference is being held in Atlanta, Georgia from December 7-8 with a pre-conference on December 6. Find more information about the 10th Annual ISDS Conference here.

Register today!

Call for Nominations for ISDS Board of Directors

2011-10-21T17:04:00.000-04:00

Dear ISDS Member,

During November 2011, there will be an election for three seats on the ISDS Board of Directors.

To serve as an ISDS board member, you must be a member in good standing of the Society and you must not have a conflict of interest. Board members serve three-year terms, meet monthly by phone and in person at least once a year (although the last couple of years it's been 2-3 times a year). Board members are responsible for governance of the society and provide strategic and fiscal oversight of ISDS activities. Board members also take leadership roles relating to specific committees or areas. Officers of the Society are elected from within the Board.

If you would like to nominate yourself or someone else for a Board position, or if you have questions about the position, please contact one of the members of the nominating committee (emails are below). Nominations will be accepted until November 10, 2011.

The final slate of candidates will be approved by the Board during its November meeting. Candidates will be asked to submit a personal statement that will be distributed to the ISDS membership. Online elections will follow prior to the December conference. The term of newly elected board members begins at the annual conference in Atlanta.

If you have any questions, please contact a member of the nominating committee.

This year's nominating committee, comprised of the three most recently elected board members, is:

John Brownstein, John.Brownstein@childrens.harvard.edu
Wendy Chapman, wwchapman@ucsd.edu
Bill Lober, lober@uw.edu

Sincerely,

John Brownstein, PhD

Wendy Chapman, PhD

Bill Lober, MD

International Society for Disease Surveillance

2011 ISDS Nominating Committee

ISDS Contract to Further Clarify Syndromic Surveillance Meaningful Use

2011-10-20T15:54:00.000-04:00

International Society for Disease Surveillance Awarded Contract to Further Clarify Syndromic Surveillance Meaningful Use

CDC’s Division of Notifiable Diseases and Healthcare Information awarded a 12 month contract to the International Society for Disease Surveillance (ISDS), collaborating with HLN Consulting, LLC (San Diego, CA), to develop business and infrastructure requirements for syndromic surveillance using clinical data from health information exchanges. This will include syndromic surveillance using hospital inpatient, and ambulatory care data from eligible professionals. In addition, health information exchange architecture will be assessed to support syndromic surveillance using clinical data.

ISDS's Dr. Laura Streichert, Executive Director, and Mr. Charles Ishikawa, Associate Director of Public Health Programs, are directing and managing the project. CDC's project officer is Dr. Taha Kass-Hout, Deputy Director of Health Information Sciences and BioSense Program Manager.

To receive project news and updates, send an email to info@syndromic.org, with "PHSS MUse News" in the subject line. Please include your name and contact information in the message body.

NACCHO Model Practices Program Accepting 2012 Applications

2011-10-20T15:46:00.000-04:00

NACCHO is now accepting Model Practices applications from now until November 11. NACCHO's Model Practices Program honors and recognizes outstanding local public health practices and shares these practices through the Model Practices Database. By submitting a practice, local health departments (LHDs) contribute to the overall improvement of public health through evidence-based practice methods.

FIVE REASONS TO APPLY:
1. Be recognized for your LHD's success and for leading by example.
2. Earn local and national recognition through press release templates and a spotlight in the 2012 fall issue of NACCHO Exchange.
3. Receive a listing in NACCHO's online Model Practices Database.
4. Receive a coveted award and public honors and showcase a poster of your practice at the Model Practices Reception during the 2012 NACCHO Annual Conference in Los Angeles July 11-13, 2012.
5. Be eligible to receive a stipend to attend the 2012 NACCHO Annual conference. (The opportunity for a stipend is available only to dues-paying members.)

To submit a Model Practices application, visit www.naccho.org/topics/modelpractices. For more information, contact the Model Practices team at practices@naccho.org. NACCHO looks forward to receiving your application.

MODEL PRACTICES APPLICATION WILL BE ACCEPTED OCT. 10-NOV.11.

Syndromic Surveillance Implementation Guide Released

2011-10-18T19:49:00.000-04:00

A message from Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology and Laboratory Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (October 2011)

Public Health Syndromic Surveillance (PHSS) is a widely adopted and rapidly evolving approach for monitoring and assessing public health. PHSS leverages information technology to systematically collect large volumes of electronic health-related data from clinical and non-clinical service providers in near "real-time" (e.g. hospital, school administrations). Epidemiologists then analyze PHSS data to monitor, assess or identify population health trends including infectious disease outbreaks, exacerbations of chronic disease conditions, and injuries. In conjunction with other surveillance and situation information, PHSS is used by public health authorities (PHA) to guide or evaluate response measures and public health interventions.

The PHIN Messaging Guide for Syndromic Surveillance: Emergency Department and Urgent Care Data Version 1.0 - HL7 Version 2.5.1 (Version 2.3.1 Compatible), translates the recommendations made by the International Society for Disease Surveillance and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to help realize the public health objective of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Programs (a.k.a., Meaningful Use Programs) authorized under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act as part of 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act) legislation.

A Frequently Asked Questions document accompanies this guide to assist implementations. Public comments were received on the earlier draft of this document and disposition of the comment received are available in the Public Comment Disposition worksheet.

All Syndromic Surveillance documents can be found online at the CDC’s Meaningful Use website http://www.cdc.gov/ehrmeaningfuluse/Syndromic.html. The PHIN Messaging Guide for Syndromic Surveillance is posted on the PHIN website at http://www.cdc.gov/phin.

For additional questions or support E-mail: phintech@cdc.gov

Data Use Agreement Update from BioSense 2.0 Redesign

2011-10-17T10:01:00.000-04:00

The BioSense 2.0 Program Redesign is well under way thanks to the hard work and commitment of several individuals and public health associations. The Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE), the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), and the International Society for Disease Surveillance (ISDS), have been working in close collaboration to prepare BioSense 2.0 for the November 15, 2011 roll out. For new information on the model Data Use Agreement for health jurisdictions with regard to data submission and data sharing, please read the latest posting from October 14th from Taha Kass-Hout.

The body of the post can be found below or at this link to the BioSense community forum: https://sites.google.com/site/biosenseredesign/community-forum/checkinginwiththecommunityonbiosense20.

Checking in with the community on BioSense 2.0

posted Oct 14, 2011 9:13 AM by Taha Kass-Hout [ updated Oct 14, 2011 11:44 AM ]

As we get closer to the roll out of BioSense 2.0 on November 15, 2011, I wanted to address some of the concerns and questions that are floating around the community. The Redesign team and I are very aware of many of the issues jurisdictions are facing and I wanted to bring the community back in the loop on all our efforts to make BioSense 2.0 the most effective system for the user, state and local health jurisdictions.

One of the pieces many jurisdictions are awaiting is the model Data Use Agreement (DUA). In order to come up with a model DUA, the Redesign team continued to stick with the user centered approach. The Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE), Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), and International Society for Disease Surveillance (ISDS) were instrumental in collecting input from their membership, reflecting on similar experiences in Distribute and BioSense 1.0, and contributing and commenting on other data sharing models. After this information collection, all input and advice were shared with a group of lawyers, who not only utilized that information but also spent time having conversations with the various association partners in order to accommodate all concerns and issues. The lawyers then generated a draft which was vetted by CDC and the associations, and then generated a final draft, which has been vetted with ASTHO and CSTE and is set to be finalized for distribution to jurisdictions next week as part of the recruitment effort. Jurisdictions will be able to customize the DUA based on their jurisdictions laws and preferences for 1) data submission, and 2) data sharing. This week, CSTE started reaching out to jurisdictions in an effort to help them join the new environment by facilitating the forthcoming DUA adoption and manage ongoing agreements. This DUA will be signed between the jurisdiction and ASTHO, who is leading the task of procuring and overseeing the BioSense 2.0 environment in the Internet cloud, as well as ensuring it meets strict security, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliance regulations and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) requirement for moderate impact information. They also oversee the governance body, which is comprised of state and local health stakeholders that represent all BioSense 2.0 users.

One common misconception has arisen about data, both submission and sharing:

1. Data Submission: Jurisdictions can use the BioSense 2.0 environment to “catch” data submitted from hospitals and store it in secure space that is owned and controlled solely by the jurisdiction. The system has the capability to transform it from line level de-identified data submitted from hospitals (for example, ISDS and CDC Meaningful Use Recommended HL7 data elements) to any format that a jurisdiction wants to use. All of this is encompassed under data submission and is a set of actions that is restricted within the confines of a jurisdictions space. Using this service also allows hospitals to take advantage of MUse incentives started to going out in November 2011, in correlation with the roll out of BioSense 2.0. While this does not provide direct money to the health departments, it allows them to create an opportunity for hospitals to share syndromic surveillance data as one of the three public health options in MUse. Though a priority for the November 2011 roll out, the data submission will not be limited to MUse as users have expressed interest in various types of health-related data (even beyond healthcare). The roll out for November 2011 will only address line listing submission of data from providers or health departments, in the future we hope to accommodate submissions of aggregate level data from health departments upon time when the community and the governance body see this as a priority for the Redesign team to implement.

2. Data Sharing: Outside of these activities is the shared space, where jurisdictions can elect to share views of de-identified data with other jurisdictions at the level they so choose (facility, city, county, or state). The system is built to aggregate line listing data and make them available for jurisdictions to share in the shared space area at the level of aggregation where a jurisdiction is comfortable sharing it information. Further, CDC can only view data in the environment when invited as a collaborator, and cannot remove data from the environment or publish on any data without the express consent and notification of the jurisdiction and as outlined explicitly in the terms and conditions in the DUA. At a minimum, aggregated level-data for the level a jurisdiction allows to can be shared with CDC. As opposed to BioSense 1.0, CDC will not suck out any data from BioSense 2.0, nor will it have the control of any data; that control is delegated only to the jurisdiction and data can only be viewed by CDC at the level a jurisdiction authorizes it to see.

The Redesign team, working with the associations, has put together a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document designed to address your most common questions and concerns about BioSense 2.0, I hope you take advantage of this rich resource. Additionally, CSTE held a webinar on August 17, 2011 to introduce its members to BioSense 2.0. The webinar included an overview of the BioSense Program, an explanation of CSTE’s involvement, roles and responsibilities of the various associations and ISDS, and a preview of the latest BioSense application. I encourage you to view the recording of this webinar as it may help you further understand the significant changes underway with the redesign effort, what BioSense 2.0 entails, and how we arrived here with the help of state and local public health communities.

I want to continue the dialogue about BioSense 2.0, its services, governance, policies, and issues. It is so crucial for all partners in this effort to remain engaged in order to ensure that the users, whom this redesign is centered around, are continually heard and responded to. BioSense 2.0 is, at its core, intended to be a public health situation awareness program that state and local jurisdictions can actually use and find useful. Our goal in the BioSense Program is to co-create a system that is simple to access and easy to maintain for the state and local public health communities. Please continue to provide feedback, challenges, and ideas for BioSense 2.0. I am looking forward to November 15, 2011, when BioSense 2.0 opens for business, and even more so, to seeing state and local health jurisdictions finally have a space to share, collaborate, and learn from each other.

PS: Please check back for information from ASTHO on their role in BioSEnse 2.0 soon!

Cheers, -Taha

----

This post was taken from the BioSense Community Forum and can be found in the original text here: https://sites.google.com/site/biosenseredesign/community-forum/checkinginwiththecommunityonbiosense20.

Thank you!

Twelfth Post for Public Health Situation Awareness

2011-10-13T13:32:00.004-04:00

*Message from the BioSense Redesign Team

Dear BioSense Redesign Stakeholder:

Our twelfth post for the Public Health Situation Awareness topic has launched! Please take a moment to visit the BioSense Redesign site and answer the new questions* that explore support needs and elements of data exchange (i.e., messaging capabilities) with BioSense 2.0. The CDC will use your feedback to better understand how to tailor the new BioSense application. Your feedback is valuable to the redesign of the BioSense system and program.

Please visit the BioSense Redesign Collaboration Web Site to access questions at the Requirements Gathering Work Center or link directly to the questions at the PHSA Feedback Forum 12: Prepare to share data in BioSense 2.0 (Posted 10/12/2011).

If you’d like to contribute to a previous post, please click here to access archived questions.

Thank you,

The BioSense Redesign Team

*New questions are posted for comment on a weekly to biweekly basis. Check back often for updates and summaries of feedback posted by stakeholders.

CALL FOR PAPERS: International Public Health Journal 2012;4(3) Special issue

2011-10-03T22:33:00.004-04:00

Message from Rosemary M. Caron, PhD, MPH, Associate Professor, University of New Hampshire

Dear Community-Engaged Scholarship Colleagues,

The International Public Health Journal intends to publish a special issue that addresses the following theme: Lessons learned in building community capacity to address persistent public health problems. This theme is intended for academicians and practitioners who work on persistent public health issues in diverse urban and/or rural communities across the globe so that evidence-based and practical solutions that have improved the health of their populations can be shared. These lessons may have come about as a result of surveillance, policy, collaborations, education, research, management and/or a combination thereof. Describe the unique community-based methods that you implemented to have a positive outcome on the public health issue(s) that affects your population of interest.

Manuscripts should be around 4,000 words in length and should be in the Vancouver style (http://www.icmje.org/index.html). Manuscripts are due no later than November 15, 2011 and should be sent electronically to the attention of Dr. Rosemary M. Caron, who is the guest editor for this special issue (Rosemary.Caron@unh.edu). Manuscripts from academic and community collaborators are encouraged. The expected publication of this special issue in the International Public Health Journal is July-September 2012.

The International Public Health Journal is a peer-reviewed Journal aimed at the scientific community interested in the broad area of public health. This Journal provides an international multidisciplinary forum with a holistic approach to public health issues, health and medicine, health and social policy, service aspects, developmental aspects, epidemiology, rehabilitation, family and social issues, quality of life, and all other aspects of public health over the whole age spectrum.

Electronic Health Records News Update

2011-09-22T08:39:00.007-04:00

Adapted from Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology Communication

Electronic Health Records and Quality of Care Study

The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) recently published a study comparing care provided to diabetic patients in physician practices that use electronic health records (EHRs) versus physician practices that do not. The results indicate that practices that use EHRs -- especially in conjunction with collaborative efforts to improve quality -- delivered measurably better care than practices which rely on paper records.

Check out the Office of the National Coordinator's Buzz Blog for a blog by the study's lead author, Dr. Randall Cebul, which summarizes their findings.

New Frequently Asked Questions Available for BioSense 2.0!

2011-09-20T18:15:00.001-04:00

Announcement from BioSense Redesign Team:

Though it’s time to say goodbye to summer, the BioSense Redesign Team is closing the summer out with a bang! We’ve kept our ear to the ground at recent public health conferences and workshops, and based on your feedback, we’ve developed a new resource to address questions like, “What will the new BioSense 2.0 do? How will it be different? or How will CDC use data contributed to BioSense 2.0?”

Our new Frequently Asked Questions or “FAQs” are designed to address the most common questions and concerns about BioSense 2.0, with topics ranging from the new environment to cloud and security issues and integration of meaningful use requirements.

Please take a moment to visit the Frequently Asked Questions on the BioSense Redesign Collaboration Site and share with your partners!

Workshop on Patient Privacy and Secondary Use of EHR Data

2011-09-15T19:30:00.001-04:00

The National Center for Biomedical Computing iDASH (integrating Data for Analysis, Anonymization, and Sharing) and the Division of Biomedical informatics at UCSD are hosting a workshop on privacy technology on October 10-11, 2011. The workshop will assemble specialists in privacy technology, privacy policy and law, and secondary use of healthcare data to discuss technological approaches to preserving privacy, existing laws and regulations, and stakeholder concerns in biomedical data sharing. U.S. and international perspectives will be presented as participants discuss the fundamental challenges of establishing a secure, privacy-preserving environment in which researchers can analyze and share data.

Registration is free. Details about the agenda, registration, and logistics can be found here: http://idash.ucsd.edu/index.php/component/content/article/34/102-privacy-workshop

Message from BioSense Redesign Team

2011-08-29T10:16:00.002-04:00

Dear BioSense Redesign Stakeholder:

A new post for the Public Health Situation Awareness topic has launched! Please take a moment to visit the BioSense Redesign site and answer the new questions* that explore elements of data exchange (i.e., current and preferred data formats and transport methods) with BioSense 2.0. The CDC will use your feedback to better understand how to tailor the new BioSense application. Your feedback is valuable to the redesign of the BioSense system and program.
Please visit the BioSense Redesign Collaboration Web Site to access questions at the Requirements Gathering Work Center or link directly to the questions at the Public Health Situation Awareness Feedback Forum 11: Data Exchange with BioSense 2.0 (posted 08/23/2011).

If you’d like to contribute to a previous post, please click here to access archived questions.

Thank you,

The BioSense Redesign Team

*New questions are posted for comment on a weekly to biweekly basis. Check back often for updates and summaries of feedback posted by stakeholders.

ISDS 10th Annual Conference Announcement

2011-08-23T14:51:00.003-04:00

Building the Future of Public Health Surveillance
Sheraton Atlanta Hotel
Atlanta, GA

December 6 - 8, 2011

Dear Colleagues,

Over the last few weeks, we have heard from many ISDS 10th Annual Conference abstract submitters, and potential submitters, that the August abstract deadline has proven difficult for many to meet, due to the timing of seasonal vacations and other aspects of the summer schedule. In the interest of presenting the best conference possible and fully representing the work of the society membership, we have made the decision to significantly extend our abstract submission deadline.

For those of you who were able to complete and submit your abstract by the previously published deadlines, but felt rushed in doing so, please know that you will be able to modify and resubmit your abstracts through the ISDS abstract system (you can click on "return to draft" to edit your previously submitted abstract). For those of you contemplating a submission, we hope the deadline extension will provide sufficient opportunity for you to complete your submissions; unfortunately, no further extensions will be possible.

The new (and final) deadline for abstract submission is Sunday, September 11, 2011, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. The ISDS Abstract Submission site will reopen in the next few days.

Revised Key Dates:
Abstract submission deadline: September 11, 2011
Author notification of abstract acceptance: October 10, 2011
Early registration for the conference ends: October 24, 2011

Thank you very much, and we look forward to seeing you in Atlanta!

Best regards,

Karl Soetebier and Daniel Neill
Scientific Program Chairs
ISDS Annual Conference, 2011

Please click here for more information regarding abstract submission.

To stay up-to-date with all of the latest conference information, visit our Conference website.

ISDS at the 2011 Public Health Informatics Conference

2011-08-18T10:00:00.005-04:00

There will be a number of activities in which ISDS is participating at the 2011 Public Health Informatics Conference in Atlanta, GA from August 21-24th, 2011.

The following abstracts are regarding the ISDS Meaningful Use Recommendation:

Syndromic Surveillance Data Exchange and Public Health Standards and Interoperability Processes
This abstract will be presented as a poster and will be available for viewing throughout the conference in the Grand Hall.

A Demonstration of Meaningfully Using the ISDS Recommended Data Elements
Monday, August 22, 2011; 10:30 AM

Meaningfully Advancing Public Health Syndromic Surveillance Together
Wednesday, August 24, 2011; 10:00-11:30 AM

ISDS Presentations at 2011 Public Health Informatics Conference

2011-08-15T14:16:00.009-04:00

If you are attending the 2011 Public Health Informatics Conference in Atlanta, GA, check out the following ISDS talks:

1. Syndromic Surveillance Data Exchange and Public Health Standards and Interoperability Processess

Monday, August 22, 2011
Grand Hall

Nikolay Lipskiy, MD, DrPH, Health Scientist, CDC
Taha Kass-Hout, MD, MS
Charlie Ishikawa, MSPH, ISDS
Daryl Chertcoff, MSE
Maiko Minami, BA

2. Free-Text Chief Complaint: Why Syndromic Surveillance Needs Unstructured Data

Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Regency V

Charlie Ishikawa, MSPH, Associate Director of Public Health Programs, ISDS
David Buckeridge, MD, PhD
Wendy Chapman, PhD
Michele Day, PhD
Laura Streichert, PhD, MPH, ISDS

3. Improving Public Health Surveillance Through Improved System Monitoring: An In-Depth Analysis

Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Hanover A/B

Ian Painter, PhD, Clinical Assistant Professor, University of Washington
Julie Eaton, PhD
Matt Johnson, BN
Don Olson, PhD
Anne Gifford, MPH
Debra Revere, MS
William Lober, MD

4. Meaningfully Advancing Public Health Syndromic Surveillance Together

Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Regency VI

Julia Gunn, RN, MPH
David Buckeridge, MD, PhD
Robert Beckley, BS

2011 PHI Conference

ISDS Scientific Programming Committee Proudly Announces the 10th Annual Conference Keynote Speaker

2011-08-15T11:53:00.010-04:00

Farzad Mostashari, MD, ScM

Farzad Mostashari, MD, ScM serves as National Coordinator for Health Information Technology within the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Farzad joined ONC in July 2009.

Previously, he served at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene as Assistant Commissioner for the Primary Care Information Project, where he facilitated the adoption of prevention-oriented health information technology by over 1,500 providers in underserved communities. Dr. Mostashari also led the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) funded NYC Center of Excellence in Public Health Informatics and an Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality funded project focused on quality measurement at the point of care. Prior to this he established the Bureau of Epidemiology Services at the NYC Department of Health, charged with providing epidemiologic and statistical expertise and data for decision making to the health department.

He did his graduate training at the Harvard School of Public Health and Yale Medical School, internal medicine residency at Massachusetts General Hospital, and completed the CDC’s Epidemic Intelligence Service. He was one of the lead investigators in the outbreaks of West Nile Virus and anthrax in New York City, and among the first developers of real-time electronic disease surveillance systems nationwide.

Bio and picture from the ONC website.

Remember that abstracts are due THIS Friday, August 19th. Please visit the ISDS Conference Homepage for all the latest Conference information!

Looking for a New Resource for Infectious Disease Research and Policy Information?

2011-08-10T19:31:00.010-04:00

ISDS Conference Update: Abstract Submission Deadline Extension

2011-08-10T10:10:00.013-04:00

ISDS 10th Annual Conference 2011

Building the Future of Public Health Surveillance

Abstract Submission Deadline Extension

The ISDS 10th Annual Conference abstract submission deadline will be extended to Friday, August 19, 2011.

Don't wait for the last minute! Submit your abstracts today! For more abstract submission information, please visit: http://www.syndromic.org/abstract-submission/2011.

Please note that the scholarship application deadline is still Friday, August 19, 2011. For more scholarship information, please see: http://www.syndromic.org/annual-conference/2011/scholarships.

Conference registration is now OPEN!

ONC Requests Comments on Metadata Standards

2011-08-09T16:47:00.006-04:00

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology released the following notice:

On August 5, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM), which solicits public comments on the metadata standards recommended to it by the HIT Standards Committee.

The metadata standards under consideration relate to:

Patient Identity Metadata – These metadata relate to patient identity and include: a patient’s name; date of birth; address; zip code; and relevant patient identifier(s).

Provenance Metadata – These metadata would be used to provide information on the “who, what, where, and when.” Provenance metadata would include: a tagged data element (TDE) identifier; a time stamp; the actor; and the actor’s affiliation.

Privacy Metadata – Privacy metadata would include a policy pointer and content elements descriptions such as data type (e.g., consultation note) and sensitivity.

ONC will accept public comments on the ANPRM for 45 days following its publication in theFederal Register. The public comment period will close on September 23, 2011.

For more information, please visit ONC's website at http://healthit.hhs.gov.

Job Opportunity at ISDS: Program Assistant

2011-08-01T16:12:00.000-04:00

ISDS is now accepting applications for a Program Assistant position in Boston, MA. The Program Assistant will work under the supervision of the Executive Director and in collaboration with other project team members to assist with coordination of activities related to ISDS's programs.

View the full job posting >>>

Applications are due by August 20th, 2011.

Distribute Presentations at the 2011 Joint Statistical Meetings

2011-07-31T12:00:00.010-04:00

The Distribute Project will be presented in a special session "Statistical Issues in Influenza Surveillance" at the Joint Statistical Meetings in Miami, FL on August 2, 2011:

336	Tue, 8/2/2011, 10:30 AM - 12:20 PM	CC-A107
Statistical Issues in Influenza Surveillance — Topic Contributed Papers
Section on Statistics in Defense and National Security , Section on Government Statistics , Scientific and Public Affairs Advisory Committee
Organizer(s): Howard Burkom, The Johns Hopkins University
Chair(s): Po-Yung Cheng, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
10:35 AM	Comparing Various Methods for Sentinel Surveillance Site Placement — Alberto Segre, University of Iowa ; Gerard Rushton, University of Iowa ; Philip Polgreen, University of Iowa ; Geoffrey Fairchild, University of Iowa
10:55 AM	The Distribute Project, Syndromic Surveillance, and the New Paradigm for Public Health Data Sharing and Analysis — Marc Paladini, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
11:15 AM	Generation of Prediction Intervals to Assess Data Quality in the Distribute System Using Quantile Regression — Ian Painter, University of Washington ; Julie Eaton, University of Puget Sound ; Debra Revere, University of Washington ; Bill Lober, University of Washington ; Donald Olson, International Society of Disease Surveillance
11:35 AM	Analytic Evaluation of a Standardization Effort for the Distribute Emergency Department Surveillance Project — Howard Burkom, The Johns Hopkins University ; Donald Olson, International Society of Disease Surveillance ; Marc Paladini, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene ; Atar Baer, Public Health-Seattle & King County ; Debra Revere, University of Washington
11:55 PM	Floor Discussion

Distribute Proof of Concept Report Published in PLoS Currents: Influenza

2011-07-27T12:53:00.001-04:00

A report on the Distribute Project Proof of Concept phase has been published in PLoS Currents: Influenza:

The ISDS DiSTRIBuTE project is a case example for a new paradigm in the collection and sharing of public health data. By connecting state and local jurisdictions that conducted electronic, emergency department (ED) syndromic surveillance, DiSTRIBuTE aimed to demonstrate the feasibility and utility of a fast, inexpensive, low burden model for population level respiratory, febrile and influenza-like morbidity surveillance. The effort emerged out of the unique collaborative environment of ISDS, where federal, state, and local public health agencies, academia, businesses, non-profit organizations, and other stakeholders leverage resources and technology to work together to advance the practice and research of public health disease surveillance.

The development and proof of concept phase of the ISDS DiSTRIBuTE project from 2006 to 2009 was supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) through a cooperative agreement with the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) and the Markle Foundation. Implementation and expansion of DiSTRIBuTE into a nationwide system in 2009 and 2010 was supported by the Markle Foundation, and CDC through a cooperative agreement with the Public Health Informatics Institute.

Citation: Olson DR, Paladini M, Lober WB, Buckeridge DL; for the ISDS Distribute Working Group. Applying a New Model for Sharing Population Health Data to National Syndromic Influenza Surveillance: DiSTRIBuTE Project Proof of Concept, 2006 to 2009 [Internet]. Version 25. PLoS Currents: Influenza 2011 Jul 8 [revised 2011 Jul 21]. Available from: http://knol.google.com/k/don-olson/applying-a-new-model-for-sharing/261w1jjdm6zrb/5#

Job Opportunities

2011-07-25T17:18:00.000-04:00

Here are some opportunities for employment that may be of interest to ISDS members:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Director, Division of Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention (DHDSP)

The incumbent will:

Develop goals and objectives that integrate chronic disease prevention, health promotion, and scientific and programmatic activities that improve cardiovascular health,
Identify key program areas in which prevention measures can accomplish reductions in the leading causes of cardiovascular disease morbidity and mortality,
Provide expert guidance to public health officials, researchers, Physicians, and scientific administrators,
Represent NCCDPHP with a variety of CDC organizations as well as the Office of the Surgeon General, National Academy of Sciences, United States Agency for International Development, the World Bank, the World Health Organization, National Institutes of Health and other external partners,
Evaluate research and identifying factors and contributors to cardiovascular health and their relationship with disease prevention and health promotion activities,
Plan, organize and oversee the division’s activities, and
Lead and manage approximately 100 staff of highly qualified and competent medical, scientific and technical workforce and a $74M annual budget with a broad portfolio of prevention programs and activities.

Qualification requirements:

Doctor of Medicine (MD) or Doctor of Osteopathy (DO) licensure,
A minimum of five years of residency training in the specialty of the position or equivalent experience and training,
Recognition as a scientific and public health leader in the field of cardiovascular health, and
Demonstrated capacity to provide innovative leadership.

To be considered, email your CV to Wayne Giles. Or see more information on DHDSP.

Director, Public Health Surveillance and Informatics Program Office (PHSIPO)

The incumbent will:

Provide leadership and guidance on public health surveillance and informatics to CDC and local/state/federal jurisdictions/agencies.
Coordinate with CDC and various stakeholders to improve the nation’s capabilities for conducting real-time biosurveillance and enables health situational awareness through access to existing data from healthcare organizations across the county,
Develop a vision for the execution and operation of innovative, cross cutting, scientifically rigorous public health surveillance and informatics programs and technology initiatives in order to make data available to public health experts.

Qualification requirements:

Doctor of Medicine (MD) or Doctor of Osteopathy (DO) licensure,A minimum of five years of residency training in the specialty of the position or equivalent experience and training,
Recognition as a scientific and leader in the field of public health surveillance, and
Demonstrated capacity to provide innovative leadership.

To be considered, applicants MUST apply prior to midnight EST on August 16th at www.usajobs.gov. Access the vacancy directly>

Virginia Department of Health

Enhanced Surveillance Coordinator/Syndromic Surveillance Coordinator

Job Description:

Manages the implementation, analysis, and dissemination of statewide enhanced surveillance projects. Provides technical oversight for enhanced surveillance activities statewide and supervises enhanced surveillance staff. Prioritizes new initiatives and establishes policies and procedures for the implementation of projects. Identifies opportunities for surveillance enhancements and designs new programs and guides development of new data management applications when appropriate. Creates and delivers training, shares best practices and develops user manuals for enhanced surveillance activities. Plans and implements targeted surveillance initiatives. Manages grant activities and prepares progress reports. Serves as a liaison to the Offices of Emergency Preparedness and Response (EP&R) and Information Management (OIM), and is a Bioterrorism Response support team member.

Application Details:

A completed application, including all previous employment, salary history, and education must be submitted online at for consideration. Search for position using position number 08910. The deadline to apply is 7/31/11.

ISDS at NACCHO Annual 2011

2011-07-18T12:00:00.004-04:00

Be sure not to miss ISDS' presentation at NACCHO Annual 2011 next week in Hartford, CT:

"Making the Most of Meaningful Use: Enhancing Surveillance Standards"
Friday, July 22nd, 2011; 8:00 AM-9:00 AM
Room 22/23

Facilitator: Charles Ishikawa, MSPH, Associate Director of Public Health Programs, ISDS

Speakers:

Julia Gunn, RN, MPH, Director, Communicable Disease Division, Boston Public Health Commission and ISDS Board Director
Taha Kass-Hout, MD, MS, Deputy Director for Information Science and BioSense Program Manager, CDC/OSELS/PHSPO/Division of Healthcare Information

The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act authorized the establishment of programs to improve health care quality, safety, and efficiency through the promotion of health information technology (HIT), including electronic health records and private and secure electronic health information exchange. The public health meaningful use criteria for public health are immunizations, electronic laboratory reporting, and syndromic surveillance data. During this session, participants will learn about Meaningful Use, the opportunities for public health surveillance, and how integrating syndromic surveillance standards, recommended by the International Society for Disease Surveillance and supported by the CDC’s BioSense Program, can enhance agency capability.

Scholarships Available for the ISDS 10th Annual Conference

2011-07-14T15:54:00.000-04:00

ISDS is pleased to announce that is will be able to offer a limited number of travel scholarships for Distribute Community of Practice members, graduate students and international public health professionals to attend the 10th Annual Conference in Atlanta.

For eligibility criteria and application requirements, please visit your category of interest:

Call for Abstracts for the ISDS 10th Annual Conference

2011-07-12T11:43:00.000-04:00

Submissions of original work are now being requested for peer review and presentation at the ISDS 10th Annual Conference, to be held in Atlanta, Georgia from December 7-8 2011.

The ISDS Annual Conference is the premier annual scientific gathering for researchers and practitioners in public health, epidemiology, health policy, biostatistics and mathematical modeling, informatics, computer science, and related fields focused on disease surveillance and emerging challenges to public health practice. The conference will feature internationally renowned speakers from health departments, leading universities, government agencies, and top industrial organizations.

This year's conference will focus on the theme "Building the Future of Public Health Surveillance." The conference seeks to present scientific work at the juncture of innovative analytical techniques, progressive public health practice, and cutting edge informatics to support a timely, accurate and informed response to emerging outbreaks of disease and other health threats. Authors may wish to draw from the tracks but are in no way limited to those topics. Abstract submission will be performed online and all selected abstracts will be published online in a special supplement of the Emerging Health Threats Journal.

Please visit the 2011 Annual Conference page for details on how to register and submit an abstract. Questions regarding the Call for Abstracts may be sent to the 2011 Scientific Program Chairs, Daniel Neill and Karl Soetebier.

We look forward to receiving your submissions and to seeing you at the Annual Conference in December.

Best regards,
The International Society for Disease Surveillance

Utilizing Social Media and Open Data for Public Health Situational Awareness Forum

2011-07-01T17:33:00.000-04:00

On July 20th, 2011 in Washington DC, the HHS Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response's Fusion Cell is sponsoring a forum on "Utilizing Social Media and Open Data for Public Health Situational Awareness." This forum is the first in a series of innovative discussions that are sponsored by the Fusion Cell.

This forum presents an opportunity for representatives from the private industry, government agencies, academic institutions and non-profit organizations to join together and "help identify pioneering ways to move from open source information into actual public health response -- so everyone is better informed, better prepared, and better able to respond fast to protect health and save lives." Registration is open until July 8th, 2011.

For learning objectives, registration information, etc. please visit the event website.

International Health Regulations Webinar Series

2011-06-21T11:33:00.001-04:00

The International Health Regulations (2005) came into effect in 2007 and mandate that each signatory country be capable of detecting, analyzing, reporting, and responding to a public health event of international concern by 2012. Some countries are capable of this at present, but these are generally clustered in resource-limited settings. Many more countries will not be fully capable of compliance by 2012, some because of insufficient surveillance systems.

The ISDS Global Outreach Committee, in order to provide a learning opportunity to better understand the IHR requirements and data elements required by the World Health Organization (WHO), has put together a webinar series for summer 2011.

Monday, June 27th, 2011; 11:00 am - 12:00 pm EST
Introduction to IHR and IHR Requirements and Indicators for Monitoring Core Capacity Development

Speaker: Dr. Stella Chungong, Lead, IHR Monitoring Team, World Health Organization

Tuesday, August 9th, 2011; 12:00 - 1:00 pm EST
Illuminating Impediments to IHR Implementation and Possible Interventions

Speaker: Dr. Scott McNabb, Emory University

Participate in the Syndrome Ontology Evaluation Survey!

2011-06-16T17:20:00.003-04:00

On behalf of Mike Conway at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), ISDS would like to invite you to participate in a survey on "Syndrome Ontology Evaluation."

The survey is designed to help evaluate the syndromic definitions encoded in the Extended Syndromic Surveillance Ontology, a Natural Language Processing oriented terminological resource developed at UCSD. The terminology builds on and extends the Syndromic Surveillance Ontology, developed primarily at McGill University and the University of Pittsburgh.

Eight syndromes are covered:

Gastrointestinal Syndrome
Respiratory Syndrome
Influenza-Like Illness
Consitutional Syndrome
Neurological Syndrome
Botulism Syndrome
Hemorrhagic Syndrome

Go to the survey

The survey should take around 15 minutes to complete.

Discussion on the June 2011 Report of the National Biosurveillance Advisory Subcommittee

2011-06-16T16:38:00.000-04:00

For its June 2011 meeting, the Public Health Practice Committee will be hosting a discussion on the 2011 Report of the National Biosurveillance Advisory Committee (NBAS). Pamela S. Diaz, MD, Director of Biosurveillance Coordination at the Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services (OSELS) will be leading the discussion.

When: Monday, June 27th, 2011; 12:30-1:30 pm EST

Register for the webinar!

ISDS Presentations at the 2011 CSTE Annual Conference

2011-06-10T18:18:00.001-04:00

ISDS is gearing-up for the 2011 Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) Annual Conference next week in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Members and staff will be leading breakout and roundtable sessions on BioSense, Distribute and Meaningful Use. We hope to see you there!

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Pre-Conference BioSense Workshop – Breakout Session, 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM

The ISDS Recommended Core Syndromic Surveillance Business Process Applied: Where can technology enhance your work?

Charlie Ishikawa & Lucia Roja-Smith

Syndromic surveillance involves a complex array of discrete task, processes and decisions. Business processes and workflows are a method for graphically depicting and articulating any complex activity. In this session participants will learn how this methodology can be used to understand syndromic surveillance and work in small groups to identify how technology may enhance their work.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Concurrent Breakout Sessions

ASSESSING PERFORMANCE OF SYNDROMIC SURVEILLANCE: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM

Distribute surveillance system: View of the 2010-2011 flu season - Donald Olson, International Society for Disease Surveillance
Data quality monitoring approaches in the Distribute system - Julie Eaton, University of Puget Sound
Using prediction intervals to determine the effect of timeliness on accuracy for ILI ratios - Ian Painter, University of Washington

Concurrent Roundtable Discussions: 12:30 PM - 1:15 PM

INFECTIOUS DISEASE

Adopting and assessing use of a common ILI syndrome for monitoring and estimating

impact from influenza across multiple sites in the Distribute Project

Donald Olson, International Society for Disease
Blaine Reeder, University of Washington

SURVEILLANCE / INFORMATICS

Syndromic surveillance requirements and Meaningful Use

Michael A Coletta, Virginia Department of Health
Taha Kass-Hout, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Global Public Health Activities at the 2011 PHI Conference

2011-06-10T18:03:00.000-04:00

More Information

Thursday 5/26 at AMIA PHI 2011: ISDS Lunch & Learn

2011-05-25T11:43:00.001-04:00

Today at AMIA PHI 2011 in Orlando, FL, ISDS is hosting a Lunch & Learn Session from 12:00-1:30 pm. If you're at PHI 2011, be sure to stop by!

Topic: Advancing Surveillance Practice Through Research and Innovation

Description: This presentation will feature a panel and audience discussion of how public health informatics is creating new opportunities for collaboration and innovation in surveillance research and practice.

Panelists:

David Buckeridge, MD, PhD, McGill University, ISDS President
Bill Lober, MD, MS, University of Washington, ISDS Board Member
Laura Streichert, PhD, MPH, ISDS

CDC Job Opening: Supervisory Health Scientist GS-14

2011-05-13T17:11:00.000-04:00

The Department of Health and Human Services of the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention has an opening for a Supervisory Health Scientist in Atlanta, GA. View the full posting >>

Released: PHIN Messaging Guide for Syndromic Surveillance

2011-05-06T14:51:00.000-04:00

The CDC is requesting public comment on the draft PHIN Messaging Guide for Syndromic Surveillance. The document translates the business requirement recommendations developed by ISDS to technical specifications to support meaningful use of electronic health records for syndromic surveillance. Comments will be used to inform and finalize the Messaging Guide. The messaging guide and related materials are available for download below:

Notice of Comment in the Federal Register, Vol. 76, No. 87, 5/11/2011

PHIN Message Guide for Syndromic Surveillance

ISDS Final Recommendation

New Biomedical Informatics Summer Online Courses Offered by the University of Utah

2011-04-26T12:12:00.001-04:00

Advances in Geospatial Technologies for Health: Abstracts Due 4/30

2011-04-26T11:35:00.001-04:00

Another friendly reminder from our colleagues from the ISPRS Working Group 2 (Health) about the abstract submission deadline for the Advances in Geospatial Technologies for Health symposium:

Advances in Geospatial Technologies for Health

11-14 September 2011 Santa Fe, NM USA

ISPRS Working Group 2 (Health) is proud to announce its symposium on Advances in Geospatial Technologies for Health. This 2-day event focuses on applications of geospatial technologies for human health and well-being to integrate environment with health sciences. The venue is the La Fonda Hotel located at the historic plaza in Santa Fe, NM USA.

The Mission of ISPRS Commission VIII, Working Group 2 (Health) focuses on applications of remote sensing and other Earth observing technologies to understand how the natural environment contributes to environmental (asthma, cholera, meningitis, malaria, yellow fever) and infectious/zoonotic (AIDS, TB, influenza, gastroenteritis, plague) diseases. One of the areas of interest is identifying Earth observing data that are used to improve models and to enhance surveillance systems, decision support tools, and early warning systems. The working group aims to reach out to colleagues not only in the scientific community, but also in the health and well-being communities of practice to begin a dialog and share information between these two communities. This mission is supported by the working group's terms of reference and a variety of ISPRS and other related venues and opportunities.

Accepting Abstracts for Presentations (DEADLINE: 30 April 2011)

The Symposium will be held in Santa Fe, NM USA from 11 September - 14 September 2011. The organizers cordially invite you to submit an abstract for oral or poster presentations in the following topic areas:

New Geospatial Technologies for Health
Advances in Environmental Monitoring
Health Science Applications
Data Integration and Modeling
Real-time and Early Warning Systems
Emerging and Re-emerging Diseases
International Monitoring Programs
On and Just Beyond the Horizon

Abstracts (in English) of 250 words or less should be submitted via email no later than 30 April 2011. Notification of acceptance will be made by 31 May 2011.

EMAIL ABSTRACT TO: wg2abstracts@edac.unm.edu

Register for the Public Health Practice Webinar for Updates on Meaningful Use and the Distribute ILI-S Project

2011-04-20T16:37:00.000-04:00

On Monday, April 25th, from 12:30-1:30 pm EST, the ISDS Public Health Practice Committee will be hosting its regularly scheduled meeting.

Topics of discussion will include:

An update on the Meaningful Use discussion held at the Distribute Community of Practice Meeting in Atlanta -- Michael Coletta
A presentation by Don Olson on the Distribute ILI-S Pilot Project:

"Towards adopting a common influenza-like illness (ILI) syndrome across multiple public health jurisdictions." There are no national standards for classifying emergency department (ED) chief complaint data into syndromes for public health surveillance. Local syndrome definitions allow for regional idiom and coding variations and are often tailored to meet specific public health surveillance needs, making comparisons of trends across regions challenging. The ISDS Distribute Project engages partners from state and local health departments to share de-identified ED data at the aggregate, rather than individual, level. Distribute conducted a pilot study to assess interest, capability, and usefulness of implementing common syndrome concepts and coding across multiple Distribute sites. Six sites provided 4 years of data using a common syndrome definition comprising 3 sub-syndrome components defined by a formal code set -- fever/cough, fever/sore-throat, and flu. The distribution of ILI standardized component sub‑syndromes varied among sites, adding more detail to geographic differences. Adoption of a common syndrome across jurisdictions represents a potential advance in syndromic surveillance practice.

Public Health Informatics 2011 Conference: Abstract Submission Deadline Extended

2011-04-15T13:22:00.000-04:00

The abstract submission deadline for the Public Health Informatics 2011 Conference has been extended to April 25, 2011. This conference is being presented by the Public Health Informatics and Technology Program Office (PHITPO) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Abstract submission is a competitive process, that encourages both cross-sector and cross-jurisdictional abstract submittals -- including those that show linkage to the clinical and/or emergency response sectors.

2010 Conference Abstracts Now Available Online

2011-04-13T13:59:00.000-04:00

The abstracts from the 9th Annual ISDS Conference in Park City, Utah, are now available online!

In 2010, ISDS partnered with the Emerging Health Threats Journal to publish the proceedings in special supplementary issue. Emerging Health Threats is an online, open-access, international peer-reviewed journal that covers a broad range of emerging threats to human health.

Abstracts can be browsed according to track; each track has a PDF batch of abstracts with authors listed in alphabetical order. To view the track listings, click the Table of Contents link in the right-hand sidebar.

Finally, be sure not to miss the editorial by Atar Baer, Don Olson and John Brownstein!

Save the Date for the 10th Annual Conference!

2011-04-13T13:32:00.001-04:00

Building the Future of Public Health Surveillance

Pre-Conference Workshop: December 6th, 2011

Conference: December 7th & 8th, 2011

Sheraton Atlanta Hotel, 165 Courtland Street NE, Atlanta, GA

The ISDS proudly celebrates its tenth annual conference dedicated to the advancement of the technology, research, and practice of public health surveillance. This unique gathering brings together a community of researchers and practitioners focused on monitoring, understanding, and improving population health. The conference presents scientific work at the juncture of innovative analytical techniques, progressive public health practice, and cutting edge informatics to support a timely, accurate, and informed response to emerging outbreaks of disease and other health threats. Come help us evaluate where we have been, explore where we are, an envision what can be as we work together to build the future of public health surveillance.

Regular updates will be posted at:

http://www.syndromic.org/annual-conference/2011

Questions? Contact ISDS.

What's the 411 on 911? BioSense Redesign Connects with First Responders & Emergency Preparedness Professionals at PHPS

2011-04-07T10:00:00.001-04:00

Here is another announcement from our colleagues at BioSense regarding the recent Public Health Preparedness Summit (PHPS):

The BioSense Redesign project staff made their rounds at the recent Public Health Preparedness Summit (PHPS) in Atlanta; we conducted a variety of pre and post conference information gathering activities to gain a better understanding of data and communication needs during critical events and emergencies. Addressing the needs of public health for emergency preparation and response are critical to the redesign of the BioSense Program and the information gathering activities at PHPS represents a key opportunity to engage users in the development process.

Our pre-conference workshop featured insightful presentations from the BioSense Program Director, Taha Kass-Hout, and Julia Gunn of the Boston Public Health Commission and the ISDS Board of Directors, along with concurrent roundtable sessions. Participants described their interactions with various technologies and communication platforms and their preferences for each during the session. Roundtable activities also included a task analysis to examine data and communication needs of local public health practitioners during a flood and pandemic influenza. On day two, a similar exercise conducted during an interactive session gathered additional feedback on the spectrum of public health concerns and challenges posed by these two kinds of critical threats. Key topics discussed included resource, supply, and equipment management; communication needs; critical data and information considerations; and the diversity of roles and responsibilities needed to maximize partner and stakeholder response.

If you missed BioSense at PHPS, please take a moment to visit the BioSense Redesign Collaboration Website and check out their Community Forum; view the Requirements Gathering Work Center or edit the Coverage Map. Questions and comments are welcomed!

Data Types Pre & Post Disaster: What Can We Learn From Japan? Join the Conversation on the BioSense Redesign Collaboration Website

2011-04-06T12:10:00.000-04:00

Our colleagues from BioSense have asked us to share this message regarding their newest posting on the BioSense Redesign Collaboration website:

Dear BioSense Redesign Stakeholder,

Our eighth post for the Public Health Situation Awareness topic has launched! In light of the recent earthquake, tsunami, and radiological emergencies in Japan, these new questions* explore data types and whether additional data types would be useful pre- and post-disaster. The CDC will use your feedback to better understand the spectrum of data types neccessary during an event and also routine monitoring and surveillance. Your feedback is valuable to the redesign of the BioSense system and program.

View the questions, or contribute to a previous post.

Thank you,
The BioSense Redesign Team

*New questions are posted for comment on a weekly to biweekly basis. Check back often for updates and summaries of feedback posted by stakeholders.

Advances in Geospatial Technologies for Health: Accepting Abstracts for Presentations

2011-04-04T15:14:00.001-04:00

The International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) Working Group 2 (Health) will be hosting a symposium on Advances in Geospatial Technologies for Health in Santa Fe, NM, from September 11-14, 2011.

This two day even focuses on applications of geospatial technologies for human health and well being to integrate environment with health sciences. Abstract submission for presentation is open until April 30, 2011.

The Mission of ISPRS Commission VIII, Working Group 2 (Health) focuses on applications of remote sensing and other Earth observing technologies to understand how the natural environment contributes to environmental (asthma, cholera, meningitis, malaria, yellow fever) and infectious/zoonotic (AIDS, TB, influenza, gastroenteritis, plague) diseases. One of the areas of interest is identifying Earth observing data that are used to improve models and to enhance surveillance systems, decision support tools, and early warning systems. The working group aims to reach out to colleagues not only in the scientific community, but also in the health and well-being communities of practice to begin a dialog and share information between these two communities. This mission is supported by the working group's terms of reference and a variety of ISPRS and other related venues and opportunities.

The organizers cordially invite you to submit an abstract for oral or poster presentations in the following topic areas:

New Geospatial Technologies for Health
Advances in Environmental Monitoring
Health Sciences Applications
Data Integration and Modeling
Real-time and Early Warning Systems
Emerging and Re-emerging Diseases
International Monitoring Programs
On and Just Beyond the Horizon

Abstracts (in English) of 250 words or less should be submitted via email no later than April 30, 2011. Notification of acceptance will be made by May 31, 2011.

Public Health Informatics 2011 Conference: Call for Abstracts

2011-03-31T10:46:00.000-04:00

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Public Health Informatics and Technology Program Office (PHITPO) will be hosting the Public Health Informatics 2011 Conference in Atlanta from August 21-24. In accordance with the conference theme, Engaging, Empowering, Evolving...Together, this meeting is an opportunity to provide input to CDC on how to implement current and future initiatives in the greater public health and national Health Information Technology arena.

The conference will feature workshops, training on informatics and opportunities for networking across all sectors of public health, and will include participation from key groups such as NACCHO, ASTHO, CSTE, JPHIT and more.

Abstract submissions will be accepted in four areas:

Call for abstract presentations
Call for posters
Call for computer demonstrations
Call for panels

Submissions will be accepted until April 18, 2011.

Public Health Surveillance Courses Hosted by the University of Alberta School of Public Health

2011-03-25T12:03:00.000-04:00

The University of Alberta School of Public Health will be offering a series of Public Health Surveillance professional development courses in Edmonton, Alberta from May 30 - June 14, 2011. Courses will range from two to five days.

The courses are designed for front-line public health staff and will have an applied focus. They are ideal for practitioners, clinicians and policy developers working in health services, health systems, government and non-governmental organizations.

The courses will cover the fundamentals of planning, implementing and evaluating surveillance systems for communicable and non-communicable diseases, injury, and risk factors. They will also provide practical knowledge in the use of modeling, geographic information systems, and communication and dissemination.

Faculty lecturers are from:

Alberta Health and Wellness
Alberta Health Services
McMaster University
US CDC and Prevention Public Health Agency of Canada
University of Alberta, Faculty of Nursing, School of Public Health
University of Calgary, Faculty of Medicine

Additional details available on the course web page. Or, for more information, please contact Ashley Orleski.

HIMSS Now Accepting Applications for the 2011 Davies Awards

2011-02-17T14:56:00.000-05:00

HIMSS is now accepting applications for the 2011 HIMSS Davies Awards of Excellence. The awards program honors hospitals and health systems, independent physician practices, public health and community health organizations that have successfully achieved value from EHRs to improve health care delivery.

Past awards for public health have gone to the Boston Public Health Commission (2009, for their use of their syndromic surveillance system, B-SYNSS), and NC-DETECT (2005, for their early even detection system).

Information on the award process and numerous resources are available on the HIMSS Davies Award website. Please contact David Collins, Director, Healthcare Information Systems, HIMSS, for more information.

ISDS Releases Final Recommendation for Meaningful Use

2011-02-17T14:23:00.002-05:00

The International Society for Disease Surveillance (ISDS), in close collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's BioSense Program, developed syndromic surveillance standards and guidelines that will be used by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) to clarify the public health surveillance requirements of the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) Meaningful Use Programs. Development of the ISDS Final Recommendation brought together leaders in syndromic surveillance from throughout the public health community, and gathered input from all stakeholder groups, including eligible providers and hospitals, EHR technology vendors, and public health decision makers.

View the final recommendation: The Core Processes and EHR Requirements of Public Health Syndromic Surveillance.

Read more about the ISDS Meaningful Use Project >>

Syndromic Surveillance Seminar at the Boston University School of Public Health

2011-02-16T15:34:00.004-05:00

Webinar on Environmental Data Measurement and its Application to Public Health

2011-02-08T15:57:00.004-05:00

For its February webinar, the Research Committee has invited select colleagues from the International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) to outline some potential opportunities for collaboration between ISPRS and ISDS.

Webinar Info
Date: Thursday, February 24th, 2011; 12:00-1:30 pm EST
The webinar will introduce the ISPRS Health Working Group and its upcoming Symposium on "Advancing Geospatial Technologies for Health," as well as its in-progress book entitled Environmental Tracking for Public Health Surveillance. Two contributing authors/editors, Richard Kiang and Clara Witt, will present overviews on their chapters.

Background
Under the ISPRS Remote Sensing Applications and Policies Technical Commission (Commission VIII), a new Health Working Group (WG VIII/2) has been formed to better understand how the applications of Earth observing technologies can contribute to knowledge of the natural environment's role in shaping environmental and infectious diseases. The Working Group has several upcoming activities that may be of interest to ISDS members, which will be highlighted during the webinar:

Symposium on "Advances in Geospatial Technologies for Health," to be held on September 12th and 13th, 2011 in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Upcoming book entitled Environmental Tracking for Public Health Surveillance, to be published by Taylor and Francis. Featured ISDS members include Taha Kass-Hout, MD, MS and Elena Naumova, PhD.

Presenters

Amy Budge, Health Working Group Chair, Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico
Stan Morain, Health Working Group Secretary, Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico
Richard Kiang, Health Working Group Co-Chair, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Clara Witt, VMD, MPH, Captain, USPHS, and InterAgency Liaison, Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center

Register Now!

Triple S Project: Syndromic Surveillance Survey and Assessment towards Guidelines for Europe

2011-01-25T16:02:00.000-05:00

The International Society for Disease Surveillance is pleased to announce its role as an advisory member of the Triple-S Project in Europe. Former Board Director Duncan Cooper will be serving as ISDS' liaison throughout the project, and will continue to provide updates as they become available.

Below is the project's first press release:

Triple S (Syndromic Surveillance Survey and Assessment towards Guidelines for Europe) is a European project to develop guidelines to strengthen public health surveillance and rapid response to prevent and assess health threat impact has been announced. This work covers health threat or impact from both infectious and environmental hazards. The programme, co-financed by the European commission, involves twenty four organisations from fourteen countries. It aims to produce a handbook for member states to allow future early warning systems to be developed and assessed.

The Public Health Action Programme Triple S (Syndromic Surveillance Survey, Assessment towards Guidelines for Europe, grant agreement GA 2009.11.12) will review and analyse European syndromic surveillance systems. The program is co-financed by the European commission through the Executive Agency for Health and Consumers. It encompasses an inventory of existing and proposed syndromic surveillance systems, including country visits for an in-depth understanding of selected systems. The project will also provide scientific and technical guidance for the development and implementation of syndromic surveillance systems for both human and animal health, according to the needs and expectations of the member states. The aim of the Triple S project is to increase the European capacity for real-time or near-real time surveillance and monitoring of the health burden of expected and unexpected health related events.

The first meeting for this three-year project, coordinated by the French Institute for Public Health Surveillance (InVS), was held in Luxembourg from November 22nd to 25th, 2010. The Health and Consumer Directorate General of the European Commission (DG Sanco), the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the World Health Organization Europe (WHO/Europe) and the International Society for Disease Surveillance (ISDS) are members of the advisory board, to ensure good exchange of practices and expertise at both the European and the global level.

For further information please contact Duncan Cooper.

Public Health Informatics Distance Learning Course Offered by AMIA

2011-01-18T15:24:00.000-05:00

The International Society for Disease Surveillance has received a message from our colleagues at AMIA regarding a distance learning opportunity:

"AMIA, the center of action for more than 4,000 informatics professionals and experts, is offering a 16-week, distance-learning, introductory course on Public Health Informatics (PHI), starting on January 28, 2011. The course is taught by Catherine Staes, BSN, MPH, PhD, University of Utah. The course, for which up to 50 Continuing Education credits are available, aims to impart the following learning objectives:

Fundamental informatics principles and their application to public health;
Current and evolving public health surveillance systems and performing basic system analysis;
Mission and practice of public health and identifying opportunities to advance public health using informatics methods and tools;
Standards relevant to public health and creating design artifacts to enable system interoperability"

Please see the course website for further details on on learning objectives and course content.

January Literature Review: Spatial Scanning Tips and Tricks for Practical Outbreak Detection

2011-01-18T14:58:00.000-05:00

Date: January 27th, 2011; 12:00-1:30 pm EST

For its January 2011 Literature Review, the ISDS Research Committee is pleased to present Daniel Neill, PhD, Assistant Professor of Information Systems at Carnegie Mellon University, who will be speaking about his recent publication, "An empirical comparison of spatial scan statistics for outbreak detection" in the International Journal of Health Geographics.

After conducting the regularly scheduled review of articles during the first 30 minutes of the call, Dr. Neill's talk will begin promptly at 12:30 pm EST.

Register for the webinar.

Call for Papers: Geospatial Applications in Disease Surveillance

2011-01-04T13:07:00.000-05:00

The International Journal of Applied Geospatial Research (IJAGR) is now accepting submissions for a special issue on 'Geospatial Applications in Disease Surveillance.' ISDS member Amy J. Blatt, PhD, GISP, is a guest editor of this publication.

The following information is from the official Call for Papers:

SUBMISSION DUE DATE: July 1, 2011

SPECIAL ISSUE ON GEOSPATIAL APPLICATIONS IN DISEASE SURVEILLANCE
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF APPLIED GEOSPATIAL RESEARCH (IJAGR)

Guest Editor: Amy J. Blatt, Ph.D., GISP

GIS is an excellent visualization tool for analyzing epidemiological data, revealing trends,
and identifying dependencies and inter-relationships. GIS serves as an ideal platform for the convergence of multi-disease surveillance activities. Public health resources, specific diseases and other health events can be mapped in relation to their surrounding environment and existing health and social infrastructures. Such information creates a powerful tool for monitoring and management of epidemics.

OBJECTIVE OF THE SPECIAL ISSUE:

The purpose of this special issue is to gather current and up-to-date research from scientists and policy makers working in the area of disease surveillance to better understand the challenges and opportunities of real-time disease surveillance and visualization, and to develop integrated solutions for future approaches that are efficient, cost-effective, and fulfill the needs of both policy and science.

RECOMMENDED TOPICS:
Topics to be discussed in this special issue include (but are not limited to) the following:
Design of surveillance systems in developing and developed countries
Remote sensing applications in disease surveillance
Visualization and management of disease outbreaks
Endemic disease surveillance
Exotic and emerging disease surveillance
Data collection, transmission, and management
Implementation of surveillance using GIS
Modeling outbreaks (social network analysis, multi-agent systems)
Integrating different scales of surveillance
On-line collaborations, including Web 2.0 initiatives

ISDS Committee Meeting Schedule in Park City

2010-11-30T17:58:00.001-05:00

If you're joining us in Park City, Utah, and are interested in attending an ISDS Committee meeting, here is the schedule:

Wednesday, December 1st
11:30 am -12:00 pm: ISDS Town Hall Meeting
Join the ISDS Board and staff for an update on the 2010 year. ISDS Vice President John Brownstein will be reviewing the latest ISDS activities, projects, and more for interested members.

Thursday, December 2nd
12:30 - 1:00 pm:

Education & Training, Painted Horse
Public Health Practice, White Pine Parlor
Conference, Arrowhead

1:00 - 1:30 pm:

Global Outreach, Painted Horse
Research, White Pine Parlor

Social and Outdoor Activities in Park City, UT

2010-11-22T16:47:00.001-05:00

It's hard to believe that the ISDS Annual Conference is now only a week away! If you're joining us in Utah this year, please read on to learn more about what to do while you're there. Some skiing options and opportunities for other group activities are highlighted below.

We have just received this update from the Canyons Resort on their 2010 ski season:

Ski season at the Canyons will begin on Friday, December 10. Until that time, the Canyons will provide on-call shuttle service between the resort and nearby Park City Mountain for those who wish to ski before the Canyons’ opening day. This shuttle service will be available daily between the hours of 8am – 5pm. Please call the hotel directly at (435) 615-8040 for more information.

Other ski options include Deer Valley Resort (also in Park City), Alta and Snowbird (both ~1 hour from Park City).

In addition, ISDS staff are currently looking into arranging other group activities. If you are staying on after the conference on December 2nd, 3rd and 4th, and are interested in joining colleagues for an outdoor activity, please let us know via email. Please indicate your preferences in your correspondence:

Snowshoeing ($63-70 per person)
Cross country skiing ($55 for groups of 3+)
Tubing ($20 for 2 hours)
Alpine coaster ($20 per ride)

Final Materials Now Posted for 9th Annual Conference

2010-11-19T17:38:00.000-05:00

With the 9th Annual Conference now less than two weeks away, the ISDS team is busy making the final preparations for Park City, Utah.

Final versions of the following documents are now posted on www.syndromic.org:

Full Conference Agenda
Oral Presentation Schedule
Poster Presenter List

In addition, plenary and keynote speaker bios are now available.

Research Committee Webinar: "Developing Syndrome Definitions Based on Consensus and Current Use"

2010-11-09T16:16:00.000-05:00

For its November meeting, the ISDS Research Committee has invited Wendy Chapman, PhD, Associate Professor in the Division of Biomedical Informatics at the UCSD School of Medicine, to present her recent publication in JAMIA entitled, "Developing Syndrome Definitions Based on Consensus and Current Use."

The presentation will be followed by a discussion, moderated by Don Olson, on evaluating a standard ILI syndrome definition across multiple sites in the Distribute Project. Since the Distribute Project began in 2006, sites have been sending their aggregated emergency department ILI syndrome data, collected using region-specific definitions that accommodate sites' own surveillance needs. The wish to improve comparability across systems has led to continued efforts to standardize. The question of how best to harmonize syndrome definitions across disparate systems remains, thus, it is hoped that in this discussion, participants can weigh in on how to begin incorporating Chapman's findings into the ILI-S Pilot Project.

Date: Thursday, November 18th; 12:00-1:30 pm US EST

Register Online

More Information

BioSense Redesign Invites Stakeholders to Make Sense of Surveillance

2010-11-01T15:21:00.001-04:00

Another important announcement from our colleagues at CDC:

Using input and guidance from our local, state, and federal surveillance partners, CDC is pleased to annouce that the BioSense Redesign is underway! The goal of the redesign is to coordinate and link exisiting surveillance systems and build capacity where it’s needed. This renewed focus will ensure rapid and enhanced interchange of surveillance information.

Bottom line, we want BioSense to meet your needs. By integrating local- and state-level data into a cohesive picture, BioSense will accomplish three objectives—(1) provide more useful information for state and local users; (2) supply multipurpose value of timely data for regional entities and organizations (i.e., multistate); and (3) offer a national picture of multiple health outcomes and syndromes.

We’ll be the first to admit that our redesign efforts are a major undertaking; however, we truly view the redesign as a collaborative effort that places you, the stakeholder, at the center of the redesign process. Currently, we are gaining invaluable feedback and recommendations from stakeholders like you, through a number of methods, including the BioSense Redesign Collaboration Web Site—the focal point of the redesign.

If you have not already done so, please take a moment to visit this site. There you will find a number of interactive elements, like the Requirements Gathering Work Center and the Syndromic Surveillance Systems Coverage Map. The Work Center is a virtual space where we gather stakeholder feedback on topics ranging from capacity and governance to application design. New questions are posted for user input on a weekly to biweekly basis. Additionally, the Coverage Map, which has been populated with data from the Distribute project, provides a snapshot of the nation’s syndromic surveillance systems. Like the BioSense Redesign, maintenance of the Coverage Map is a collaborative effort that can only be successful with stakeholder input.

Your feedback is invaluable and it will directly impact the redesign of the BioSense program. We hope that you will become a regular visitor and contributor to the Requirements Gathering Work Center. If you are the appropriate person to edit your jurisdiction’s data on the Coverage Map, please send an e-mail and your name will be added to our list of approved site editors.

Visit the BioSense Redesign Collaboration Web Site and view the Coverage Map or view the Requirements Gathering Work Center.

Let’s make sense of surveillance together!

October Literature Review: Absolute Humidity and Influenza Transmission Dynamics

2010-10-19T13:46:00.000-04:00

On Tuesday, October 26th, the Literature Review subcommittee is hosting its bi-monthly Literature Review, along with a special presentation by scientist Jeffery Shaman of the College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences at Oregon State University. The meeting will begin at 12:00 pm EST with a short summary of recent publications, followed by Shaman's presentation at 12:30 pm EST.

Shaman will discuss his groundbreaking work investigating the role of absolute humidity on influenza transmission dynamics, including his recent paper "Absolute Humidity and the Seasonal Onset of Influenza in the Continental United States," published in PLoS Biology. His recent work on this topic have fundamentally changed the way we understand influenza seasonality -- and they may well alter how we practice disease surveillance in the future. Be sure not to miss this opportunity!

Call for Papers: International Conference on Animal Health Surveillance 2011

2010-10-12T14:37:00.001-04:00

The International Society for Disease Surveillance would like to pass along an announcement sent to us by some of our members. Earlier this year, it was announced that the first ever International Conference on Animal Health Surveillance would be happening in Lyon, France in May 2011.

The ICAHS is now accepting submissions for papers and has opened registration:

"The aim of the conference is to gather scientists and policy makers working in the area of animal health surveillance to exchange new ideas and better understand the challenges and opportunities that each group faces, and to develop solutions for future surveillance approaches under considerations of efficiency, cost-effectiveness and quality that fulfill the needs of both policy and science. We hereby invite submissions of papers for oral and poster presentations. Oral presentations will be 15 minutes plus discussion. Details on poster formats will be provided directly to the authors after acceptance of their submission.

Submissions are invited in the following themes:
1) Value and evaluation of surveillance systems
2) Design of surveillance for different objectives and populations (developing and developed countries)
3) Data collection, transmission and management
4) Dissemination of surveillance information
5) Training in animal health surveillance
6) Implementation of surveillance"

Read the full Call for Paper Submissions

ISDS Workgroup Supports Meaningful Use of EHR Technology

2010-10-12T14:37:00.000-04:00

This fall, as CMS certifies technologies for the Medicare and Medicaid electronic health record (EHR) Incentive Program, ISDS's Meaningful Use Workgroup is developing core EHR requirements for syndromic surveillance to support meaningful use by public health authorities.

Convened in July, this eight member Workgroup of public health surveillance experts will document current syndromic surveillance business processes and data requirements. The BioSense Program of the CDC Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology and Laboratory Services is providing funding to support these activities.

On September 27th, ISDS published the Workgroup's Preliminary Recommendation. This document presents a snapshot of their work, including: A listing of syndromic surveillance business goals, objectives and processes; and a minimum data set commonly used in public health syndromic surveillance.

ISDS members and other community stakeholders will have an opportunity to contribute during an open commenting period scheduled for late-November to mid-December. The Workgroup's Final Recommendation will be released in January 2011.

Learn more about Meaningful Use Workgroup, and find resources on the EHR Incentive Program on the project's page on syndromic.org.

ISDS Job Opening: Executive Director

2010-10-07T12:10:00.000-04:00

The International Society for Disease Surveillance is currently accepting applications for an Executive Director position.

Summary:
The Executive Director of the International Society for Disease Surveillance (ISDS) functions as the Chief Executive Officer of the society and provides leadership and direction for ISDS in collaboration with the Board of Directors. The Executive Director is responsible for overall strategic planning, setting annual goals and objectives, revenue generation, financial management, organizational development, implementation of policies set by the Board of Directors as well as administrative management of the Society. The Executive Director reports to the ISDS Board President and Executive Committee.
The Executive Director is responsible for identifying, developing and implementing policies and programs which support the ongoing work of the Society. The Society’s work is primarily organized through the activities of specific committees, including: Public Health Practice, Education and Training, Research, and Global Outreach.

View full job description

Call for Pre-Conference "Data Dashboards and Visualizations for Biosurveillance" Swap Meet Presenters

2010-09-30T13:59:00.000-04:00

The 2010 ISDS Pre-Conference Workshop will be the second time the so-called "Swap Meet" will be held. The idea of the "Swap Meet" is to create a setting where presenters and participants can interact, discuss, and share information in a less formal environment.

This year the pre-conference workshop committee would like to include a "Swap Meet" table on the topic of "Data Dashboards and Visualizations for Biosurveillance." We are asking for interested individuals/groups to share these data dashboards and visualizations in a poster format, handouts, or laptop demo. We also strongly encourage the sharing of code, if possible.

Depending on the response to this request we will be sure to have one or two poster boards available, as well as table(s) where laptops could be set up. For the most up to date information on the pre-conference workshop, please check the agenda posted on syndromic.org. If you have any questions please contact Aaron Kite-Powell. We are looking forward to seeing you at the conference!

Syndromic Surveillance Experts Will Recommend Standards for Stage 1 Meaningful Use

2010-09-14T13:50:00.000-04:00

Brighton, Massachusetts – The International Society for Disease Surveillance (ISDS), with the support of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s BioSense Program has convened a Meaningful Use Workgroup to define current syndromic surveillance business standards and data requirements that best support Stage 1 meaningful use of electronic health record (EHR) technology by public health departments.

In this first project phase, the Workgroup will develop a provisional business process model (BPM), to inform minimum data specifications for syndrome-based public health surveillance.

An interim Stage 1 Meaningful Use recommendation for EHR vendors on syndromic surveillance data specifications will be released in October and will be ready for public comment starting in November.

A final Stage 1 Meaningful Use recommendation for syndromic surveillance will incorporate public comments and be released in January, 2011.

ISDS is coordinating this initiative with the Joint Public Health Informatics Taskforce (JPHIT). HLN Consulting, LLC (San Diego, CA), will provide analytic support to the workgroup.

ISDS’s Meaningful Use workgroup consists of seven expert syndromic surveillance practitioners from state and local public health authorities in Florida, Washington, Virginia, Indiana, Georgia, New York, and Boston, MA.

The International Society for Disease Surveillance works to improve population health by advancing the science and practice of surveillance to support timely and effective prevention and response. We facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration, and promote and conduct research, education, and advocacy.

Contact:

Charles Ishikawa, M.S.P.H.